NAME: JOSEPH OLAMIDE FAITH

MATRIC NO:17CQ023026

COURSE CODE: MCB 423

LECTURER: PROF.OLASEHINDE

ASSIGNMENT
Myiasis is the parasitic infestation of the body of a live animal by fly larvae (maggots) which
grow inside the host while feeding on its tissue. Although flies are most attracted to open
wounds and urine- or feces-soaked fur, some species (including the most common myiatic flies
—the botfly, blowfly, and screwfly) can create an infestation even on unbroken skin and have
been known to use moist soil and non-myiatic flies (such as the common housefly) as vector
agents for their parasitic larvae.
Because some animals (particularly non-native domestic animals) cannot react as effectively as
humans to the causes and effects of myiasis, such infestations present a severe and continuing
problem for livestock industries worldwide, causing severe economic losses where they are not
mitigated by human action. Although typically a far greater issue for animals, myiasis is also a
relatively frequent affliction of humans in rural tropical regions where myiatic flies thrive, and
often may require medical attention to surgically remove the parasites.
Myiasis varies widely in the forms it takes and its effects on the victims. Such variations depend
largely on the fly species and where the larvae are located. Some flies lay eggs in open wounds,
other larvae may invade unbroken skin or enter the body through the nose or ears, and still others
may be swallowed if the eggs are deposited on the lips or on food. There can also be accidental
myiasis which E. tenax can cause in humans via water containing the larvae or in contaminated
uncooked food. The name of the condition derives from ancient Greek μυῖα (myia), meaning
"fly"

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMPS

How myiasis affects the human body depends on where the larvae are located. Larvae may infect
dead, necrotic (prematurely dying) or living tissue in various sites: the skin, eyes, ears, stomach
and intestinal tract, or in genitourinary sites. They may invade open wounds and lesions or
unbroken skin. Some enter the body through the nose or ears. Larvae or eggs can reach the
stomach or intestines if they are swallowed with food and cause gastric or intestinal myiasis.
Several different presentations of myiasis and their symptoms:

Syndrome Symptoms

Painful, slow-developing ulcers or furuncle- (boil-) like sores that can last
Cutaneous myiasis
for a prolonged period

Obstruction of nasal passages and severe irritation. In some cases, facial

Nasal myiasis
edema and fever can develop. Death is not uncommon.

Aural myiasis Crawling sensations and buzzing noises. Smelly discharge is sometimes
 present. If located in the middle ear, larvae may get to the brain.

Ophthalmomyiasis Severe irritation, edema, and pain. Fairly common.

CLASSIFICATION
German entomologist Fritz Zumpt describes myiasis as "the infestation of live human and
vertebrate animals with dipterous larvae, which at least for a period, feed on the host's dead or
living tissue, liquid body substances, or ingested food". For modern purposes however, this is too
vague. For example, feeding on dead or necrotic tissue is not generally a problem except when
larvae such as those of flies in the family Piophilidae attack stored food such as cheese or
preserved meats; such activity suggests saprophagy rather than parasitism; it even may be
medically beneficial in maggot debridement therapy (MDT).
Currently myiasis commonly is classified according to aspects relevant to the case in question:
The classical description of myiasis is according to the part of the host that is infected. This is the
classification used by ICD-10. For example:
 Dermal
 sub-dermal
 cutaneous
 creeping, where larvae burrow through or under the skin
 furuncular, where a larva remains in one spot, causing a boil-like lesion
 nasopharyngeal, in the nose, sinuses or pharynx
 ophthalmic or ocular, in or about the eye
 auricular, in or about the ear
 gastric, rectal, or intestinal/enteric for the appropriate part of the digestive system
 urogenital
 Another aspect is the relationship between the host and the parasite and provides insight
into the biology of the fly species causing the myiasis and its likely effect. Thus the
myiasis is described as either.
 obligatory, where the parasite cannot complete its life cycle without its parasitic phase,
which may be specific, semispecific, or opportunistic
 facultative, incidental, or accidental, where it is not essential to the life cycle of the
parasite; perhaps a normally free-living larva accidentally gained entrance to the host.
Accidental myiasis commonly is enteric, resulting from swallowing eggs or larvae with one's
food. The effect is called pseudomyiasis. One traditional cause of pseudomyiasis was the eating
of maggots of cheese flies in cheeses such as Stilton. Depending on the species present in the
gut, pseudomyiasis may cause significant medical symptoms, but it is likely that most cases pass
unnoticed.
DIAGNOSIS
Myiasis is often misdiagnosed in the United States because it is rare and its symptoms are not
specific. Intestinal myiasis and urinary myiasis are especially difficult to diagnose.
Clues that myiasis may be present include recent travel to an endemic area, one or more non-
healing lesions on the skin, itchiness, movement under the skin or pain, discharge from a central
punctum (tiny hole), or a small, white structure protruding from the lesion. Serologic testing has
also been used to diagnose the presence of botfly larvae in human ophthalmomyiasis.

Ultrasound showing maggot infestation

 

Ultrasound showing maggot infestation

 

Ultrasound showing maggot infestation

Prevention
The first control method is preventive and aims to eradicate the adult flies before they can cause
any damage and is called vector control. The second control method is the treatment once the
infestation is present, and concerns the infected animals (including humans).
The principal control method of adult populations of myiasis inducing flies involves insecticide
applications in the environment where the target livestock is kept. Organophosphorus or
organochlorine compounds may be used, usually in a spraying formulation. One alternative
prevention method is the sterile insect technique (SIT) where a significant number of artificially
reared sterilized (usually through irradiation) male flies are introduced. The male flies compete
with wild breed males for females in order to copulate and thus cause females to lay batches of
unfertilized eggs which cannot develop into the larval stage.[citation needed]
One prevention method involves removing the environment most favourable to the flies, such as
by removal of the tail. Another example is the crutching of sheep, which involves the removal of
wool from around the tail and between the rear legs, which is a favourable environment for the
larvae. Another, more permanent, practice which is used in some countries is mulesing, where
skin is removed from young animals to tighten remaining skin – leaving it less prone to fly
attack.
To prevent myiasis in humans, there is a need for general improvement of sanitation, personal
hygiene, and extermination of the flies by insecticides. Clothes should be washed thoroughly,
preferably in hot water, dried away from flies, and ironed thoroughly. The heat of the iron kills
the eggs of myiasis-causing flies.
Control
This applies once an infestation is established. In many circles the first response to cutaneous
myiasis once the breathing hole has formed, is to cover the air hole thickly with petroleum jelly.
Lack of oxygen then forces the larva to the surface, where it can more easily be dealt with. In a
clinical or veterinary setting there may not be time for such tentative approaches, and the
treatment of choice might be more direct, with or without an incision. First the larva must be
eliminated through pressure around the lesion and the use of forceps. Secondly the wound must
be cleaned and disinfected. Further control is necessary to avoid further reinfestation.
Livestock may be treated prophylactically with slow-release boluses containing ivermectin,
which can provide long-term protection against the development of the larvae. Sheep also may
be dipped, a process which involves drenching the animals in persistent insecticide to poison the
larvae before they develop into a problem.