Basic informationInformation From Your Health Care Provider |
(Creeping Eruptions; Hookworms)
Basic informationCutaneous larva migrans is a skin infection caused by hookworms. Hookworms are parasites that infest animals, particularly dogs and cats. Humans pick up the infection by coming in contact with sand or soil where an infected animal has passed feces. The disorder is more common in warm, humid areas, such as the southeastern United States. It occurs more often in children, but can affect all ages.
First, there may be a tingling or prickling of the skin area. Then it begins to itch. This is followed by a rash or small blisters on the skin. They often form thin, raised tracks (or lines) on the skin leading from the parasite's entry point. The tracks can get longer each day. There are usually several tracks at the same time, each of different length and pattern.
A hookworm-infested animal passes feces (stool) that contains the hookworm eggs into moist, sandy soil. The eggs hatch into larvae that infest the soil around the feces droppings. When a human comes in contact with the soil, the larvae are able to penetrate the skin and cause the symptoms. The infection cannot be spread from one person to another.
The outcome is good. The infection may heal on its own over several weeks or months. Treatment with drugs can hasten the healing process.
If the blisters are scratched and opened, a bacterial infection may occur.
diagnosis & treatmentYour health care provider may prescribe an anti-parasitic drug to be applied to the skin, or taken by mouth (if the infection is more severe).
No limits.
No special diet.
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