Comment by aluminium_is_cool on 31/07/2024 at 14:24 UTC

0 upvotes, 2 direct replies (showing 2)

View submission: Ask Anything Wednesday - Biology, Chemistry, Neuroscience, Medicine, Psychology

Is it true that many people have verminosis that are undetectable by normal exams?

At which point you should avoid eating fruits that have or might have some fungus developing on? I'm thinking also on the case where you have a bunch of fruits but only few of them have visible fungus on

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Comment by crazyone19 at 31/07/2024 at 17:03 UTC

6 upvotes, 0 direct replies

No, pretty much all parasitic infections can be detected by some method such as ELISA, qPCR (plasma and fecal), blood smear, or egg detection in feces. Parasitic infections are at an all time low and are most of concern in developing countries. Mass drug administration programs have further reduced parasitic infections in these communities.

Comment by Chiperoni at 31/07/2024 at 14:39 UTC

5 upvotes, 1 direct replies

Verminosis refers specifically to parasitic worms and has no connection to fungus. We have actually made great strides recently in the eradication of many helminthic diseases. It looks like almost nobody will develop dracunculiasis soon which is amazing for developing nations that have historically struggled with it. So, the short answer is no.