Some parasitic infections may not cause any clear symptoms for a long time, so specialists from the National Public Health Surveillance Laboratory (NVSPL) remind in a press release about mandatory preventive screenings for intestinal parasites in children starting or changing educational institutions.
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Important tests for preschoolers and primary school children
Parasitic infections do not always cause noticeable symptoms. Therefore, preventive tests help to detect the infection early and, if necessary, start treatment on time and reduce the risk of its spread.
“During children’s health checks before starting preschool or primary education, as well as when transferring to another preschool or primary education institution, mandatory helminthological tests of scrapings and stool samples are required,” emphasizes Daiva Veitienė, acting head of the Parasitological Testing Subdivision of the Microbiological Testing Department at NVSPL.
Special attention should be paid if the child has stomach pain, headache, changes in bowel movements, unexplained allergies, restless sleep, itching around the anus, or similar symptoms appear after returning from holidays in warm countries. After stool tests and finding parasite eggs or cysts, antiparasitic treatment is usually necessary.
Last year, over 88% of young children had pinworms
The most common intestinal parasites in Lithuania are pinworms, roundworms, and intestinal pathogenic protozoa are also often found. Parasites brought from warm countries that are not found locally also occur.
Pinworms (Latin Enterobius vermicularis) are the most widespread intestinal parasites in Lithuania. The disease is called enterobiasis. In 2024, nearly 87% of children under 14 years old had pinworms from the total number of enterobiasis cases, and in 2025 – already 88.5 percent.
“Pinworms are small, thin, whitish helminths about 1 cm long. One pinworm crawling out of the human rectum (usually at night) lays about 10–16 thousand eggs, which mature on the human body within a few hours and become infectious. The cycle from the helminth egg entering the mouth to an adult pinworm laying eggs takes about 5 weeks. Since the eggs remain viable in the environment (home, children’s educational institution, etc.) and survive 3–4 weeks under favorable conditions, the risk of infection is significant not only from oneself but also from a contaminated environment,” the specialist points out.
Having pinworms increases bowel movements, causes abdominal pain, nausea may occur, but the main symptom is persistent itching of the anus, genital area, and perineum. It itches because the worms crawling irritate not only mechanically, but the eggs are covered with a sticky protein/gelatinous substance that sticks the eggs to the skin and causes itching.
Roundworms – one of the most common helminthiases in children
Roundworms (Latin Ascaris lumbricoides) are the second most common helminth in Lithuania. In 2024, children accounted for 73% of all roundworm infections, and in 2025 – already 76.2%. Roundworm infections most often affect children aged 2-10 years who have not yet developed proper hygiene habits.
“Roundworms are large helminths, sexually dimorphic, males 15–30 cm, females from 20 to almost 50 cm long. One female can lay about 200,000 eggs per day, which are excreted with feces and require soil or water for maturation to the infectious stage. If the soil moisture and temperature are optimal for roundworm eggs to mature, they mature within 1–1.5 months. Eggs remain infectious in soil and water for many years,” explains D. Veitienė.
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Infection occurs by consuming poorly washed vegetables, fruits, berries, contaminated spices, not washing hands after gardening or working in the flowerbed, drinking water from open sources (lakes, rivers, etc.). However, humans cannot infect each other with roundworms.
If one or two roundworms inhabit the intestine, there may be no distinct symptoms, but with more roundworms and at the beginning of the disease, when roundworm larvae migrate through the bloodstream and organs, allergic reactions begin. X-rays show foci in the lungs, the patient suffers from asthma attacks, lips may swell, and fever may rise.
“At this moment, roundworm eggs will not be found in the stool because the parasites are not yet mature and do not lay eggs. After 2–2.5 months from the helminth egg entering the human body, roundworms are developed and sexually mature, and eggs are detected in the stool. If a male lives in the human intestine, no eggs will be found in the stool,” explains the specialist.
Roundworms living in the intestine and their secretions cause symptoms such as abdominal pain, loss of appetite, dizziness, avitaminosis. Children may grind their teeth during sleep, become irritable, and roundworms suppress immunity, making children more susceptible to other infections.
Pathogenic protozoa: how are they transmitted and what are the symptoms?
Parasitic protozoan diseases also occur in Lithuania. Protozoa are single-celled microscopic organisms that move, digest, and excrete their metabolic products. Protozoa causing diseases in humans include histolytic amoeba (Latin Entamoeba histolytica), giardia (Latin Giardia lamblia), and others.
For example, in 2024, children accounted for 46% of all registered amoebiasis cases, and in 2025 – 34%. The most dangerous is Entamoeba histolytica, which is transmitted by ingesting cyst(s) – encapsulated parasites.
“When the cyst sheds its coat in the large intestine, this protozoan causes diarrhea with mucus and blood because it damages the mucous membrane of the large intestine, forming bleeding ulcers. The person suffers from abdominal pain and painful bowel movements. Histolytic amoeba can be carried by the bloodstream to various organs or tissues: brain, liver, and elsewhere, forming abscesses. Many people do not get sick but are cyst carriers and spreaders, which is dangerous to others,” explains D. Veitienė.
Pathogenic protozoa are transmitted through dirty hands, eating unwashed or poorly washed vegetables, berries, greens, and fruits, drinking unboiled water from open sources. Since few local cases are registered in Lithuania, the specialist urges attention to the mentioned symptoms after returning from Southeast Asia (Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, etc.), South American countries (Colombia, Argentina, Bolivia, Venezuela, etc.), and other warm countries.
In these countries, it is recommended to drink only boiled water or industrially produced fruit drinks, bottled water. Avoid fruit juices made at outdoor markets, cold drinks that may be made from untreated water. Brush teeth and rinse the mouth only with boiled cooled water or industrially produced and sealed bottled water.
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