VietNamNet Bridge – Ha Noi Medical University's Parasitology Department yesterday said they identified a new threadworm parasite present in human eyes in Vietnam.

Gene decoding has found that the parasite is Dirofilaria Repens, which occurs in subcutaneous tissues in dogs and cats and occasionally humans.

"This is the first time the parasite has been discovered in Vietnam," the department's director, Dr Nguyen Van De: told Viet Nam News.

The Hanoi-based National Eye Hospital reported eight cases of threadworms present in human conjunctiva within Hanoi, Ninh Binh, Ha Nam and Hung Yen, from August 2006 to the end of last year.

"These worms can be seen with the naked eye as they are usually 1mm wide and sometimes over 10cm long," said Dr De.

He said the parasites could also be found in peritonea, testicles, mammary glands and other organs, though eyes and subcutaneous tissues were the most popular.

Dr De said the worms often caused infections and especially hurt victims when they moved.

Threadworms living in human eyes could only be taken out during operation, while in other organs they could be treated by drugs.

Dirofilaria Repens larvae could be transmitted from infected dogs or cats to humans by mosquitoes, said Dr De.

"One important thing is that all mosquitoes can transmit this kind of larva, including Aedes, Anopheles and Culex mosquitoes, all of which are very popular in Vietnam," he said.

Unfortunately, current anti-mosquito chemicals in Vietnam cannot kill Culex mosquitoes. One of the suggested preventative measures was to identify the percentage of dogs and cats infected by the disease and the number of mosquitoes carrying the larvae.

(Source: Viet Nam News)