Pediatrician Urges Regular De-Worming Of Children

A pediatrician at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada, Dr Solomon Adeleke, last Monday, urged mothers to de-worm their children every term, to prevent them from worm infestation.

Adeleke told newsmen in Abuja that most children were at risk of having worm, because they ate things they picked from the ground.

He explained that when children walked on bare foot and removed their shoes to play football, there were high chances of them contracting worm. So they are at risk and if the worm is in them, it affects their growth and some of the worms may even get to a bigger size and cause intestinal obstruction.

Adeleke said that worm could cause abdominal pains, feeling of vomiting, and inflammation like fever and other multiple symptoms which could present, sometimes, as malarial.

“It also causes anaemia: lack of blood because it can enter a particular place and continue to suck blood, hence some children came to the hospital with very low blood.This could lead to operating on the child to remove the worms before they multiply,” he said.

Adeleke further advised that children between two and 10 years be de-wormed, three times yearly, as a way of reminding mothers on the need to carry out such activity and for the health of the children.

He said worms could be contracted through various means such as food, water contaminated with worms or worm eggs, mosquito carrying worm larvae and soil containing worms.

The doctor counselled that careless disposal of faeces and open defecation should be discouraged to check the prevalence of worm infection in children. “We should observe proper washing of vegetables and cooking of meat, because worms can be found in meat.

He also said that worm affects adults, especially the farmers who go on barefoot while working on the farm adding, “when you go to the farm with barefoot, worm infestation can occur, especially hookworm which is very common ascaris and hookworm were the most common worms in the body”.

He said that preventing worm infestation would be possible if the children and farmers learnt to wear their gloves