Strongyloides: A Neglected Tropical Disease
Strongyloides, Strongyloides stercoralis, are tiny parasitic worms that cause a disease, strongyloidiasis, with symptoms of varying severity, from mild, intermittent symptoms to fatalies. Strongyloides infect many people in the northern two-thirds of the Australian continent, including ARDS members. Other people who may be infected include migrants, returned service personnel, and returned travelers who have lived in or visited countries where people also have Strongyloides. There is a mistaken belief among health professionals that Strongyloides lives indefinitely in the soil, whereas in fact, the soil stages live for less than 3 weeks after contamination of soil with faeces from an infected person. ARDS is advocating for strongyloidiasis to be notifiable nationally. Currently only the severe form of the disease is notifiable, and only in the NT. We also advocate for a coordinated program for eliminating the disease in Australia. For further information, follow these links:
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