Blood flukes cause a disease called schistosomiasis, also know as bilharzia. Blood flukes are not found in the United States though 200 million people worldwide are infected with the parasite. Infection occurs when the skin comes in contact with contaminated fresh water where certain types of snails that carry the schistosomes are living. Like all flukes, the first part of their life cycle is spent inside snails in the water. The fluke then leaves the snail to search for its final host in the water. An infection with blood flukes does not show many symptoms. The symptoms that do appear are from the body's reaction to the eggs produced by the worms, not by the worms themselves. Luckily for those infected, there is a safe and effective treatment for a blood fluke infection.
Blood flukes cause a disease called schistosomiasis, also know as bilharzia. Blood flukes are not found in the United States though 200 million people worldwide are infected with the parasite. Infection occurs when the skin comes in contact with contaminated fresh water where certain types of snails that carry the schistosomes are living. Like all flukes, the first part of their life cycle is spent inside snails in the water. The fluke then leaves the snail to search for its final host in the water. An infection with blood flukes does not show many symptoms. The symptoms that do appear are from the body's reaction to the eggs produced by the worms, not by the worms themselves. Luckily for those infected, there is a safe and effective treatment for a blood fluke infection.