Guinea Worm

Guinea Worm

1. PATHOGEN

   • Dracunculus medinensis

2. LIFE CYCLE

3. DIAGNOSIS

   • Guinea worm disease is diagnosed through a simple physical exam
   • Health care providers look for the telltale white, stringy worm poking through the blister once the affected area has been immersed in water.
   • Calcified worms can be localized with x-ray examination

4. CLINICAL PRESENTATION

   • People with Guinea worm disease (GWD) have no symptoms for about 1 year. Then, the person begins to feel ill. Symptoms can include the following:
     • Slight fever
     • Itchy rash
     • Nausea
     • Vomiting
     • Diarrhea
     • Dizziness

5. TREATMENT

   • Management of Guinea worm disease (GWD) involves removing the whole worm and caring for the wound in general.
     • 1. First, the infected person is not allowed to enter drinking water sources.
     • 2. Next, the wound is cleaned.
     • 3. The worm is then wrapped around a rolled piece of gauze or a stick to maintain some tension on the worm and encourage more of the worm to emerge.
     • 4. Then, gentle traction is applied to the worm to slowly pull it out.
     • 5. Afterwards, topical antibiotics are applied to the wound to prevent secondary bacterial infections.
     • 6. The affected body part is then bandaged with fresh gauze to protect the site.
     • 7. These steps are repeated every day until the whole worm is successfully pulled out.

6. ERRADICATION PROGRAM

   • World Health Assembly (WHA) initially targeted GWD for eradication because it met the following specific criteria:
     • It was biologically and technically possible to eradicate this disease
       • Guinea Worm Disease was easily diagnosed because of its signs and symptoms. Few diseases could be confused with GWD and the public in affected communities knew and recognized the worm.
     • The benefits of eradication outweighed the costs
       • The development of a group of trained health workers who could provide both GWD management and other basic health services
       • Improvements in water supplies, sucha as: Water no longer contaminated with Guinea worm; and Enhanced advocacy for new safe water sources
     • Thanks to the Guinea Worm Eradication Program, there were only 28 human cases reported worldwide in 2018.

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