Talk:Pinworm (parasite)

Template:Cleanup
I applied the cleanup template because in several sections, this article reads like a research or term paper, not like an encyclopedia article. While sources are given, they are not in standard Wikipedia format, and debate between the sources' authors is discussed, which is inappropriate for this article. Xadnder (talk) 02:39, 29 June 2010 (UTC)

There is too much focus on an irrelevant debate and little actual scientific information. This is undeserving of this topic. Godcast

DermAtlas
The link to DermAtlas should probably be removed.

It seems they've restricted access to children genital photos due to people using them as pornography.

I've never visited the site before, but it seems to have flagged my IP address as a 'frequent viewer' of child genitalia photos - I am sure I'm not the only one their admittedly 'crude' IP address screening system has flagged as a potential abuser.

It seems that you either need a password, or an IP address nowhere near any of their 'previous abusers'.

Thoughts? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 216.58.96.134 (talk) 04:40, 16 March 2007 (UTC).


 * Or stop being a perv, either way really. 74.212.17.148 03:17, 12 August 2007 (UTC)


 * Link removed.--Snoopydawg (talk) 08:19, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

The other link, "A new drug..." while not being dead is utterly useless. It is a paragraph that appears to have been written and passed through a cheap To English translator. It provides no helpful information whatsoever. 69.1.59.67ID
 * Link removed.--Snoopydawg (talk) 08:19, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

Changes in format
I made what is arguably not a minor change, but marked it as such at. Bearian (talk) 18:04, 14 May 2008 (UTC)
 * That part has been redone.--Snoopydawg (talk) 08:19, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

Genus Enterobius or Enterobius vermicularis?
In other languages this (Enterobius vermicularis) is the name for this voice... but here this name doesn't appear, while other does (Genus Enterobius)... why? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 160.97.9.85 (talk) 21:32, 4 September 2008 (UTC)
 * Because pinworm refers to all species of Enterobius.--Snoopydawg (talk) 08:19, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

I quote from the first paragraph of this article "The pinworm (genus Enterobius), also known as threadworm or seatworm,". Although pinworms and threadworms are both intestinal species and are both from ''Phylum: Nemathelminthes, Class: Nematoda, threadworms is not the same as pinworms. Threadworms are Strongyloides stercoralis'' as pinworms is to Enterobius spp. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Bamchikawahwah (talk • contribs) 08:07, 18 February 2010 (UTC)

Time of day
Given the female is ensconced where the sun don't shine, how does she know when it's night time? Body temperature? -- Ralph Corderoy (talk) 10:25, 8 August 2009 (UTC)


 * Most likely, yes. The body's temperature is regulated by the circadian rhythm, and is at its lowest at midnight (highest at noon). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.126.229.138 (talk) 07:57, 25 October 2009 (UTC)
 * If you can find references for that, then it could be added to the article.--Snoopydawg (talk) 08:19, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

hot or cold water?
The article mentions washing your clothes frequently to avoid spread of pinworms, does it matter to use hot water or cold? Should you mop with bleach? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 166.128.171.12 (talk) 13:34, 14 October 2009 (UTC)
 * One source stated that the eggs do not tolerate heat well, so if you wash at high temperature, it will probably disinfect the eggs. However, washing at low temperature will also remove them manually from the clothes.--Snoopydawg (talk) 08:19, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

Requesting photographs
Dear Wikipedia Reader,

The pinworms article is currently lacking high-resolution images of pinworms, with the appropriate licencing. We only have one single very low-resolution image, which happens to have a too light background. Images that would be very useful and encyclopedic include: So please, if you happen to have pinworms, fight back! The wikipedia pinworm page receives 1000 hits per day (compare to e.g. Bird which gets 3000), so it is IMPORTANT. Please take some pictures and upload them on (Wikimedia commons). --Snoopydawg (talk) 08:19, 11 January 2010 (UTC)
 * Image of one or several pinworms around the anus.
 * Image of one or several pinworms on a dark background, e.g. next to a match to be able to gauge the size of the pinworm.
 * I've just taken some, but none are usable. I'll have to play with the macro mode on my camera and try again later, they're a pain to get in focus. 89.240.175.109 (talk) 16:59, 26 March 2010 (UTC)

Pinworm vs. Threadworm
To clarify some confusion, there is a difference in US vs. UK usage (this is according to Village Medical Manual by Mary Vanderkooi, 5th ed., 2000):
 * pinworm in the US is enterobius
 * pinworm in the UK is strongyloides
 * threadworm in the US is strongyloides
 * threadworm in the UK is... wait for it... enterobius (according to NHS)

In other words, pinworm and threadworm have swapped meanings across the pond. :)

--SlothMcCarty (talk) 02:58, 1 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Per Naming conventions (fauna) ("Don't use common names when it isn't clear what the name refers to"), to address this concern and the concerns raised above", I have moved the page from "pinworm" to "Enterobius". The benefit of a more common name doesn't outweigh the troubles caused by use of the ambiguous colloquialism. --Arcadian (talk) 03:40, 11 April 2010 (UTC)
 * A closer look on the internet reveals that British usage of "pinworm" referring to strongyloides is does not exist or is very marginal.
 * Google "pinworm site:.uk" = 10 500 hits
 * Google "pinworm enterobius site:.uk" = 3 120 hits
 * Google "pinworm strongyloides site:.uk" = 235 hits
 * Google "pinworm strongyloides -enterobius site:.uk" = 126 hits


 * I glanced through those results and I didn't find a single instance of strongyloides being referred to as a pinworm, despite Vanderkooi's note about the naming conventions. --Snoopydawg (talk) 10:31, 28 April 2010 (UTC)

Split article
I have split the article into the organism found here and the disease found at Pinworm infection as this makes more sense IMO. Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 14:44, 20 May 2010 (UTC)

Thread worm cause itching
I couldn't find any reference to threadworm causing itching around the anus, in the 'Transmission' section. There is mention of re-infestation from fingers to mouth, but this is mainly due to itching around the anus, which causes people to scratch in that area. I'm sure it was mentioned on this article a few years ago. Is not mentioning it supposed to be an improvement?? Jellyboots (talk) 10:17, 18 January 2011 (UTC)

Information on larvae
How big does the larvae grow before moulting into adults? What do they look like? Do they have legs? While having clear symptoms of enterobius infection, I actually captured (on outside areas) around 1.5mm long, 0.5mm thick, yellowish, live larva-like creature. It has legs on the front and sort of a tail. Is it possible that this is a larva-stage enterobius, or is it more likely to be totally another species?

Commensalism
Isn't the relationship between humans and pinworms more like commensalism than parisitism? Especially as it's usually asymptomatic?

No, the relationship is parasitic because pinworms can cause the infection enterobiasis. --Momoapplegirl (talk) 14:04, 25 October 2021 (UTC)

Why have notes and references, rather than just references?
I don't understand why this article uses note and references - where the notes just refer to the references. I think it should be changed so that the citations lead directly to the references, not via the notes. Also under life cycle someone changed this to: Cook et al. (2009) and Burkhart & Burkhart (2005) disagree over the length of this process, with Cook et al. stating two to four weeks,[19] while Burkhart & Burkhart states that it takes from four to eight weeks.[16]

This to me seems not like Wikipedia style but the style of a journal paper? EvM-Susana (talk) 11:30, 22 December 2014 (UTC)