Malabsorption syndrome in ascariasis

Abstract

The effect of Ascaris lumbricoides infection on intestinal absorption was studied in five children hospitalized on a metabolic ward. Absorption studies and peroral jejunal biopsies were performed before and immediately after de-worming. In addition, pre- and posttreatment jejunal biopsy samples were obtained in two other children while they received de-worming treatment at home. In four or five children, there was reduced fecal nitrogen excretion; the mean reduction represented 6.5% of dietary nitrogen. Steatorrhea was present in four children; de-worming resulted in a mean reduction of fecal fat from 9.9 to 2.3% of dietary fat. Three children demonstrated an impairment in d-xylose excretion, but only in one did it return to normal following de-worming. The jejunal morphology was found to be abnormal in all seven children. In each case a significant improvement was noted soon after de-worming. The results of this study strongly suggest that there is a cause and effect relationship between Ascaris infection and intestinal lesions in children.