How to Get Rid of Tapeworms in Humans

Diagnosing a Tapeworm Infection

Evaluate your surroundings, as well as any recent travel. Tapeworms exist worldwide, but infection rates vary widely between countries. While more than 10 million people are infected each year, less than 1,000 cases are estimated to occur annually in the United States. Different species of tapeworms reside in different species of animals. Pork and beef tapeworms are most commonly found in developing areas of the world such as Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, and Central and South America, and especially where free-ranging pigs are common. Beef tapeworms are also more common in areas such as Eastern Europe, Russia, Eastern Africa, and Latin America where raw beef is sometimes consumed. Fish tapeworms are more common in areas where people eat raw fish, including Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, and Japan. Dwarf tapeworms are transmitted between humans, especially among children, in regions where sanitation is poor, or where humans are living in dense conditions. Dog tapeworms occasionally find human hosts.

Review your recent diet. Infections typically occur following consumption of raw or undercooked meat from an infected animal. Tapeworms can also be transmitted through meat that has been prepared by an infected individual. Have you consumed any raw or undercooked meat? Have you been to an area where food is being prepared in unsanitary conditions?

Examine your feces. Excreted tapeworm segments are the most noticeable indicator of a tapeworm infection. These segments look like small grains of white rice. You may see excreted sections on toilet paper or in your underwear. Tapeworm segments will not begin to appear in the stool until two to three months after an adult tapeworm has established itself in your body. Stool samples may have to be examined on more than one occasion to find tapeworm segments.

Evaluate whether you have additional symptoms of tapeworm infection. Common symptoms include digestive problems such as abdominal pain, weakness, loss of appetite, weight loss, diarrhea, and nausea. However, these symptoms can indicate many other possible conditions. Remember, too, that a tapeworm infection may not cause any symptoms. While uncommon, tapeworm infection can also cause the following serious symptoms: fever; cystic masses or lumps; allergic reactions to tapeworm larvae; bacterial infections; or neurological signs and symptoms, including seizures. These symptoms sometimes develop when infections are left untreated, so it's important to seek treatment even for less serious symptoms.

Visit your physician. In order to properly diagnose a tapeworm infection, your doctor will need to administer a stool sample analysis. This will help to rule out or determine the type of tapeworm and will determine the proper medicine(s). In addition to determining if you have a tapeworm, stool analysis can identify a variety of digestive problems, including infection, nutritional deficiencies, and cancer. A blood test may also be able to identify antibodies in the blood of a person who has been infected by a tapeworm.

Treating Tapeworms

Receive a prescription from your physician. After your doctor or physician has diagnosed you with a tapeworm infection, he or she will prescribe an oral medication. Tapeworms are treated with three common prescriptions: praziquantel, albendazole, and nitazoxanide. The variety your doctor prescribes will depend upon the type of infection you have contracted.

Follow the prescribed regimen. In addition to properly taking your medication, it is important to avoid reinfecting yourself (or infecting others). Tapeworm medications do not affect the parasites' eggs, so you can reintroduce the infection if you neglect good bathroom and kitchen hygiene. If more serious infection such as cysticercosis is involved, your doctor may recommend a longer and more involved treatment regimen. Treatment may include prescription drugs, anti-inflammatory, and anti-epileptic therapy, or surgery.

Confirm that the infection is gone. Your physician will want to re-evaluate you after you have been taking your medication for some time. Depending on the severity of the infection, this can be anywhere from one to three months after you begin treatment. Prescription medication is 85 to 100 percent effective. Effectiveness depends on the type of tapeworm and the location of the infection.

Preventing Tapeworms

Avoid raw meat. Many different species that humans eat carry tapeworms, including cattle, pigs, fish, sheep, goats, and rabbits. Eliminating raw or undercooked meat from your diet is the easiest way to avoid infection. Note that poultry tapeworms do exist, but are not common in modern farming facilities because they require an intermediate insect host such as an earthworm or beetle.

Cook meat properly. When cooking whole cuts of meat such as steaks or chops, be sure that the internal temperature of the meat reaches at least 145 °F (63 °C). Ground meat should be cooked to an internal temperatures of 160 °F (71 °C). Freezing meat and fish at a temperature below 14 °F ( -10 °C) for at least 48 hours will also kill tapeworm eggs and larvae.

Disinfect fruit and vegetables when traveling in areas where tapeworms are more common. Chemical solutions can be purchased to sanitize fruit and vegetables, or you can simply wash them thoroughly with safe (boiled) water.

Wash your hands properly before preparing and eating food, and after handling raw meat or fish. This will make sure that any eggs or larvae on your hands are not transferred into your food or digestive system. You'll also avoid infecting other people. Make sure to wash your hands for at least 20 seconds. Try humming either the alphabet song or "Happy Birthday to You" twice to ensure you're washing for an adequate length of time.