“Liver and lung and skin flukes” have been plaguing this grandmother and her five-year old grandson. As both of the victims of this parasite are fighting this infection, the grandmother reports that her lungs are “not looking good” and that her grandson’s gall bladder is in need of surgery.

At any given time, the human body may be infected with dozens of different types of parasites, such as worms. Some parasites are microscopic while other worms in humans are quite visible to the naked eye. Certain types of parasites are found more often in animals; for example, the bloodworm typically infects horses. Other types of parasites may affect humans more often. In all, there are more than 3,200 types of parasites in existence today and they are divided into the following categories: Cestoda, Nematoda, Protozoa, and Trematoda.

Morgellons worm – or Morgellons disease – is a misunderstood disease that, while very real to the Morgellons sufferer, is rarely recognized as a parasitic affliction by members of the medical community.

A reader asks, “How do you get heart worms in the human heart?” Naturally, we at All About Worms are not medical professionals of any kind and our statements should in no circumstances be taken to constitute medical advice, but we do believe we possess a set of knowledge items germane to this reader’s concern. The reader asks specifically about those types of worms, if any, which may invade the human heart, a concern which is understandable both because of its obvious consequences for human health and due to the fact that popular accounts of heartworm tend to center on its occurrence in dogs and other animal hosts.

The pin worm belongs to the family Oxyuridae, order Oxyuroidea, and the phylum Nematoda. Pin worms are classified as Enterobius vermicularis. Threadworms are also classified as Enterobius vermicularis. Pin worms are also called “seatworms” and they have several spellings, including “pinworm” and “pinworms.”

This reader “would be extremely grateful” if we could help her identify some parasites that have invaded her family. Our reader writes to us in the hopes that the answers that we provide may “hopefully prevent others from experiencing a terror” such as the one our reader has faced.

Pin worms or “pinworms” belong to the family Oxyuridae, order Oxyuroidea, and the phylum Nematoda. The pin worm is classified as Enterobius vermicularis. Threadworms are also classified as Enterobius vermicularis.

“This one worm with the hook on it came out of his nose, the other one that had 2 in it came out of a sore in my leg,” this reader writes to us. She wonders if we can tell her what these worms are.

Worms whose color changes depending on their surroundings have been discovered all over the home of this woman in Fresno, CA. She asks if we can identify the worms as she is “freaking OUT.”

“Where can I get help?” is the first thing this woman writes in her submission, posing the question that many face when they are concerned about parasite-related health concerns. This reader in particular is concerned about a “hookworm” that “came out of [her] dog” which has spread to her and her family members.

Hook worms are intestinal parasites that are quite common in cats and dogs, especially kittens and puppies. They can also infect humans. Hook worms (also written as “hookworms”) can be found throughout North America, but some types of hook worm are more likely to be found in tropical and semitropical regions. There are several types of hook worm including: A. caninum (canine hook worm), A. braziliense (canine and feline hookworm), U. stenocephala (Northern canine hook worm), and A. tubaeforme (feline hook worm).

A woman in Florida states that she is infested with parasites (as seen in the images below), and that she is desperate to get them identified. The first image displays a black worm, with an arrow-shaped head and a thinner, red tail, and the second image displays a long, semi-transparent worm.

“Can you identify this worm found in my toilet bowl after peeing?” asks this reader in her submission regarding the red, semi-transparent worm pictured below. “Doctor I visited was very uncertain but suspected it was a schistosoma.”

Worms in humans are often, but not always, filarial worms. Filarial worms are parasitic worms in humans that require a human host to survive and complete the life cycle.

Loa Loa worms (also known as the “eye worm”) are classified as filarial worms, meaning they thrive in human tissue. Loiasis, often misspelled as “loaisis”, is the infestation of loa loa worms in humans.

The Guinea worm is often referred to as the “fiery serpent”, likely due to the painful symptoms of Guinea worm disease. The life and survival of the Guinea worm is unique in many ways, often requiring a year for full development of the parasite, during which entire time the Guinea worm is painfully impacting a human host with that Guinea worm disease.

Roundworm, commonly called “round worms” or “round worm” is one of the most common worms to infect pets. But round worms can infect humans, too.

“What I have found, I have discovered in every grocery store, in every food product”, writes Matthew in his submission, which does not include any photographs. In such instances we do want to make clear to our readers that any identifications we make will inherently be less accurate, as it is only based on what our reader has told us. “I asked a local butcher, and his response was: ‘What can we do?’. What I am talking about are tiny C-shaped nematodes about 1 mm wide and 2-3 mm long. They are clearish white, and move slowly. But what is interesting is that inside each little “C” is a lint-like worm that is a zig-zag shape, and capable of floating. The lint worms are incredibly thin, and seem to burrow into pieces of hair, clothing fibers, etc. And they gather and wind around each other as well as burrowing into our skin. But they grow. Often leaving worm-trails in the beard skin of men. So, my question is: How is no one noticing these things? Because they are everywhere. I’ve found them in tree leaves, and grass, but mostly just floating through the air. I am positive that they are what’s behind Morgellons. Except it is not rare. They are everywhere and in everything!”

“I found it in my stool/poop”, writes Shagufta in her submission regarding the long, pink worm pictured below. “The picture attached, in fact, [was taken] before [my] stool. What should I do?” Typically, we cannot respond to these types of submissions with much information regarding the identity of the worms, meaning those submissions which have to do with worms that come from people’s bodies. Given the potential health-related implications of finding an organism in one’s body, we are neither qualified or legally able to identify such an organism. Only a medical professional is. Of course, that is not really what Shagufta is asking: she asks what she should do. But, it is important that we note the second thing Shagufta writes in her submission; the photo was taken before she used the bathroom. This completely contradicts what she writes in the beginning, so we still want to tread with caution here.

While we don’t usually post about parasites that infect humans, we are posting about this, including a link, so that people can point to this story as proof that yes, people have parasitic ‘worms’ of all sorts infecting them. Medical editor Melissa Davey wrote an “article on a live worm that was found inside a woman’s brain“. The worm was a roundworm, one of Earth’s most simple creatures. There are many species of parasitic roundworms that can be contracted in various ways, but this particular discovery was a first. The species of roundworm they found inside the woman’s brain was a species normally found in pythons, not humans.