hookworm

Etiology

• Ancylostoma duodenale
• Necator americanus

Epidemiology

• hookworm larvae penetrate skin of humans exposed to soil contaminated with human feces
• the larvae penetrate venules & embolize to the lungs
• in the lungs the larvae penetrate alveoli resulting in asymptomatc alveolitis with eosinophilia
• coughing, then swallowing transports the larvae into the intestines where they mature into adults
• adult worms feed on blood from the mucosal capillaries

Pathology

• parasitic, round worms that infest the intestines
• cutaneous larva migrans (migration of hookworm larvae in the epidermis)
• leading cause of iron-deficiency anemia in developing countries

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More general terms

• helminth infection

More specific terms

• Ancylostoma duodenale (hookworm)
• Necator americanus (hookworm)

Additional terms

• cutaneous larva migrans