What Parasites Are in Well Water

Approximately 15 percent of American households utilize private water wells for their drinking water, according to the Environmental Protection Agency's website. There is no regulation on these water wells, so it is the responsibility of the owner to maintain and test the water for purity. Along with the possibility of contamination by chemicals, metals, radon, and radioactive elements, contamination with living parasitic organisms is also possible. These parasites can cause several health problems.

Giardia

• Several species of the Giardia protozoan exist. These flagellated microorganisms move into a water supply through contamination by fecal matter from an infected host. The organism is transmitted during its cyst life-stage. Well users can remove these cysts from well water by boiling it. Contamination with the Giardia protozoan causes giardiasis, which generally displays symptoms 6 to 15 days following infection. Symptoms include diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, fever and abdominal pain.

Cryptosporidium

• Cryptosporidium is a protozoan that causes cryptosporidiosis in humans. Infected animals release the robust oocytes in their feces; these oocytes are able to remain infective for long periods of time and under harsh conditions. Well owners may remove the oocytes by boiling the water for at least one minute. Cryptosporidiosis displays symptoms similar to giardiasis and appears between two and 10 days following infection. The symptoms may persist for up to two weeks. There is no treatment for the microorganism until a patient's immune system has dealt with the infection, only the symptoms. Immunocompromised individuals may find cryptosporidiosis to be life-threatening.

Hepatitis A

• A small intestinal virus transmitted through contact with infected fecal matter, hepatitis A can cause a wide array of symptoms, such as fever, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and jaundice. Symptoms can last for two months and generally appear 15 to 50 days following infection. Boiling water for longer than a minute, or adequate chlorination, sufficiently kills the virus in well water. Also, vaccination against hepatitis A is available to prevent the disease.

Shigella

• Shigella is a group of bacteria that causes intestinal distress. Contact with infected fecal matter or diarrhea transmits the bacteria from person to person. Well users may boil their water for one minute to kill the bacteria, use iodine tablets or use ultraviolet light to inactivate the bacteria. Shigella bacteria cause shigellosis. Symptoms of shigellosis include diarrhea which is often bloody, abdominal pain and fever and usually appear one to three days after infection, lasting about a week.