Threadworms
If you notice tiny worms in your poo, they are threadworms, sometimes called pinworms. These worms are most common in infants, and they are contagious. You can treat these worms at home without a doctor.
Check if you have threadworms.
In your poo, these worms resemble tiny white treads. These worms are noticeable at night around your child’s anus.
Other signs can include:
- Intense itching around the anus or vagina, especially at night
- irritability and disturbed sleep during the night
Self-help activities
Medicine can kill threadworms, but it does not terminate their eggs. The eggs survive for up to two weeks outside the body.
You can do certain things to stop becoming infected by these worms.
Do
- Wash hands and always scrub under fingernails and encourage children to wash hands regularly
- Shower every morning
- Rinse the toothbrushes thoroughly before using them
- Keep your fingernails blunt
- Wash sleepwear, towels, and soft toys at a hot temperature
- Frequently disinfect kitchen and bathroom surfaces
- Vacuum and dust with a damp fabric
- Always make sure children wear underwear at night – regularly change it in the morning
Don’t
- Do not share towels or other cloths
- Do not allow your child to bite nails or suck thumbs and fingers
Swallowing the eggs extends threadworms into the body. These worms lay eggs around the anus, which makes it itchy. Then when you happen to scratch it, the eggs get stuck on your fingers.
By this, they pass on to anything you touch, including:
- Clothes
- Toys
- Toothbrushes
- Kitchen or bathroom surfaces
- Bedding
- Food
- Pets
Eggs can transfer to other people when they touch these exteriors and then touch their mouths. They take around two weeks to hatch.
A pharmacist can help you.
You can buy the medicine mebendazole for threadworms from pharmacies. This medicine is generally a chewable tablet or liquid you swallow. However, if you are pregnant or your child is less than two years, this medicine is not suitable, so kindly refer your doctor before taking further action.
Reviewed by – Dr. Priyanka, MBBS MD Microbiology
Page last reviewed: 04 October 2022