The Marietta journal. (Marietta, Ga.) 1918-1944, 1920-04-30
Taeniai Mana
Dwarf Tape Worm.
Occurrences:

Occurrences:
Dwarf Tape Worm infection occurs
most commonly in Italy, large per
centage of the native population being
infected. 1t also occurs in all trop
ical countries, but only recently has
it been found to exist in the United
States to any considerable extent. In
Georgia it is second to the hookworm,
as has been demonstrated by the lab
oratory of the State Board Of Health
during the year 1919. Over fifty cases
were diagnosed at the laboratory
Hence the time has come when the
public should become acquainted with
this little parasite, so that precaution
airy measures can be intelligently EN-
ployed.
Description
The dwarf tape worm resembles the
large beef tape worm in it's gross ap
pearance, except that it is very small
not more than one inch in length
When expelled from the intestinal!
tract it is hardly visible unless the
bowel action is diluted in clear glass
dish with several volumes OF water
1t then appears as tiny, shiny white
thread, very small at one end (the
head end), but gradually tapering
and flattening out into ribbon-llke
body which upon very close examina,
ton can be seen to consist or little
segments attached to each other like
the little sections of penny script rail
road tickets. Each one OF these little
segments is capable of producing hun
dreds of little eggs which are so small
that they cannot be seen except with
a microscope. These eggs are passed
out with the feces and may stick to
the legs of flies, mice,or may be eat
en- by mice, and accidentally by man.
AS soon as the egg is swallowed, the
strong acid juices of the stomach dis,
solve its outer shell and the little
worm attaches it's head to the walls OF
the intestines. 1t does not feed on the
tissues of it's host, but obtains nour'
ishment from the digesting food float
ing around it.
How Man is infected:
Rats and mice are very commonly
infected with dwarf tape worm. Near
ly every home is infested with mice
They are so small that we pay very
little attention to them, since they
cannot eat or carry away very much
food. But as they scamper over cake
cold meats, cheese and other foods
they leave behind little pills of ex.
crement." Each pill may contain
thousands of eggs of dwarf, tape worm,
These are eaten by man and he be.
comes infected, maybe with hundreds
of thousands of worms within a. few
days.
Damage to Man.
If a person becomes very heavily
infested with tape worm, he may be
come sluggish, weak, anaemic, pale.
and subject to all kinds of other dis
eases. The worms eat an astonish.
ingly large amount Of the food which
he has gone to the trouble of chewing
and digesting in his stomach. He has
ravenous appetite and his stomach
is constantly overworked, while his
body starves for lack Of sufficient
nourishment.
How the Worms Are Diagnosed:
1t may never be possible to discov.
er the presence of the worms without
the aid of microscope. The method
is similar to that for hookworm. A.
small amount of feces is placed into
a well-stoppered, wide-mouthed bottle
the cork pushed in tightly and the
specimen sent to the Laboratory OF
the State Board of Health at the Cap
itol in Atlanta. The laboratory man
mixes a little of the specimen with
water, and examines it under mi
croscope. He is trained and recog.
nizes at a glance the eggs of any of
the various worms found in man, in.
Guiding hookworm, several kinds OF
tape worm, round worms, or stomach
worms and Others He is also able to
tell by the appearance of the egg from
just what kind of worm the egg came
He then returns q written report OF
what was found.
Treatment:
The treatment for dwarf tape worm
is similar to that for hookworm. Va.
rious drugs have been used, such as
malefern, thymol, pelletierin. The
most popular drug now employed is
known as oil of chenopodium which
can be procured at most any drug
company. The treatment should be
under the direction of a competent
physician who is familiar with the use
of such drugs. The Georgia State
Board of Health will furnish program