DRACUNCULIASIS: GUINEA WORM DISEASE

Dracunculiasis (also known as Guinea worm disease) is a parasitic infection that is found exclusively in poor countries in Africa (an eradication campaign by the World Health Organization has helped to reduce the number of infected countries from 20 to 5). Guinea worm disease begins when water fleas ingest the worm larvae from ponds, streams, or other bodies of water. After two weeks, the larvae matures and are capable of causing GWD if water flea is not filtered from water prior to drinking.

Once in the stomach, acid will digest the water flea but the worm larvae will remain. The worm will burrow through the stomach lining into the abdominal cavity where a female worm will attempt to mate with a male worm. After mating occurs, the male dies and is absorbed by the female. This occurs approximately three months after the initial infection. From there, the female burrows even further into the body and matures, growing to lengths of up to three feet, and as wide as "spaghetti noodle". After one year, the worm will attempt to leave the body and release its larvae into a water source. This is usually the only time that the parasite is detectable and when symptoms occur.

Symptoms: In the days leading up to the worm's evacuation from the body, symptoms can include fever, and swelling and pain of the area in which the worm is emerging (which 90% of the time is the lower limbs and feet). This pain induced from this process is often described as "disabling". While the disease itself is not life-threatening, the resulting lesion from the worm can lead to serious infection such as tetanus which can cause permanent disability.

Systems Infected: The majority of the abdominal cavity is infected as this is where the worm flourishes. Serious complications rarely arise just from the worm being in the body, but infection can result from the worm's exit. The worm almost always exits through the legs.

Sources: http://www.reiseklinikken.no/webbilder/guinea-worm.jpg
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/dracunculiasis/factsht_dracunculiasis.htm