Ascaricide

This article is about drugs to treat roundworm infections. See acaricides for pesticides that kill mites.

Ascaricides are drugs to treat ascariasis that is caused by infections with parasitic nematodes (roundworms) of the genus Ascaris (giant intestinal roundworms). The large roundworm of pigs (Ascaris suum) typically infects pigs while Ascaris lumbricoides affects human populations, typically in sub-tropical and tropical areas with poor sanitation. Ascaricides belong to the group of drugs collectively called anthelmintics which expel parasitic worms (helminths) and other internal parasites from the body by either stunning or killing them and without causing significant damage to the host.

Types

Common ascaricides include:

Native Americans have traditionally used epazote (Chenopodium ambrisioides) for treatment, which was not as powerful as pharmaceutical compounds, but spontaneous passage of Ascarids provided some proof of efficacy.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Holt, Jr Emmett L, McIntosh Rustin: Holt's Diseases of Infancy and Childhood: A Textbook for the Use of Students and Practitioners. Appleton and Co, New York,11th edition
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