Epidemiology/lifecycle

• Faecal oral: ingest eggs, larvae hatch in GIT, release eggs

Clinical

• Majority asymptomatic

• Co-infection with ascaris and hookworm is common, and more likely to cause symptoms such as abdominal pain, diarrhoea/dysentery, tenesmus, rectal prolapse.

• In children: failure to thrive, growth retardation, anaemia

Diagnosis

• Faecal OCP (trichuris)

Treatment

• Albendazole or mebendazole

Prevention

• Sanitation