How to Get Tested for Tapeworms

A tapeworm is any member of the class Cestoda. Humans usually serve as the primary host for the adult, which lays eggs that are passed out in the feces. An intermediate hosts ingests the eggs through fecal contamination of their food. The larvae encyst in the tissue of the intermediate hosts, which is then ingested by humans where it matures to complete the cycle. Here's how tests for tapeworms are performed.

Instructions

• 1

  Examine stool samples microscopically to detect infections of tapeworms that release their eggs or body segments directly into the stool. Hymenolepis nana is the most common tapeworm in the United States and easily detected with this method.

• 2

  Use two to three stool samples to increase the chances of finding tapeworm eggs. This test is relatively insensitive because eggs and segments are released at irregular intervals and may be completely absent at times.

• 3

  Take a cellophane tape swab of the perianal area. This method detects 85 to 90 percent of Taenia saginata infections.

• 4

  Take a series of magnetic imaging resonance (MRI) scans in cases involving encysted larvae, especially around the central nervous system. This imaging technique is useful in diagnosing neurocysticercosis. A Computed Tomography (CT) may be more sensitive in detecting small calcified cysts.

• 5

  Confirm the tapeworm infestation with immunologic testing. This type of testing requires a blood sample and is highly specific and sensitive. Examples include complement fixation, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, hemagglutination, immunoblot and radioimmunoassay.