Amebiasis is an intestinal illness caused by a microscopic ameba parasite, and anyone can contract amebiasis.
Disease Facts
Anyone can get amebiasis, but it is found more often in people arriving from underdeveloped tropical or subtropical areas, individuals in institutions for the developmentally disabled and homosexual males.
People get amebiasis by swallowing the cyst stage of the parasite in contaminated food or water. It can also be spread by person-to-person contact or sexually through oral-anal contact.
People infected with ameba may experience mild or severe symptoms or no symptoms at all. Fortunately, most infected people do not become seriously ill. The symptoms of amebiasis include nausea, loose stools, bloody or mucoid diarrhea, weight loss, abdominal tenderness and occasional fever. Rarely, the parasite will invade the body beyond the intestines and cause a more serious infection, such as a liver abscess.
The symptoms may appear a few days to a few months after exposure but usually within 2 to 4 weeks.
Some people with amebiasis may carry the parasite for weeks to years, often without symptoms.
Infected people are the only sources of the parasite. Fecal material from infected people may contaminate water or food that may serve as a vehicle to infect others.
Examination of stools under a microscope is the most common way for a doctor to diagnose amebiasis. Sometimes, several stool samples must be obtained because the number of amoeba changes from day to day.
Specific anti-parasitic drugs can be prescribed by a doctor to treat amebiasis.
Generally, it is not necessary to exclude an infected person from work or school. Casual contact at work or school is unlikely to transmit the disease. Special precautions may be needed by food handlers, staff employed in day care settings or health care workers. These persons should be excluded from duties until after treatment and the person is no longer clinically ill.
The most important precautions are careful hand washing after each toilet visit and proper disposal of sewage. Refrain from oral-anal contact until effectively treated.
The most important precautions are careful hand washing before eating or preparing food. Raw foods should be properly cleaned. Refrain from oral-anal sexual contact until effectively treated.