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Is it threadworm?

1 reply

babyraccoon · 02/05/2014 17:32

Have just been informed that a child in my son's preschool has threadworm. He mentioned an itchy bum once or twice over the past few weeks, but he doesn't seem bothered other than that, so I'm not sure if it was just 'normal' itchy bum that kids get. I checked his bum last night around 10 and saw nothing at all. I haven't seen anything in his poo.

I have baby girl who is still in nappies, and I'm driving myself crazy checking them. I know that threadworm looks like small white cotton threads, but how apparent would they be? I'm looking very very closely and have seen something that I could convince myself is threadish, but I'm not 100% convinced at all. I've just shown my husband and nappy and he thinks I'm crazy.

I'd be happy to go ahead and treat everyone and clean the house and all that, but the thing is, our baby is immunocompromised (she's on chemo) and her consultant wasn't happy for her to be treated when it was just a hypothetical that she might have threadworms. But if she definitely does, I'd push for a more definite course of action. There seems little point in treating everyone but her if she has them.

So my question: how apparent are threadworms in poo? How definite are the symptoms? (I realise some people don't have symptoms, hence me looking for signs of threadworm in poo and on my son's bum.) I feel like I'm going crazy with trying to figure out if we have something and it may all be for nothing!

OP posts:
MrsCakesPremonition · 02/05/2014 17:38

They look like 1cm long, white thick cotton thread. They wriggle.
I've never spotted them in poo, just on tissue paper on wiping (or when on DC bum watch when they have had a very itchy night).
The only symptom I've come across is an intensely itchy bum at bedtime (the warmth of being in bed seems to bring them out).

IMO it isn't worth driving yourself mad over. Just get the medicine from the chemist, dose all the family (and redose as instructed on the medicine). Wash all bedding and keep an extra careful eye on handwashing hygiene.

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