Questioncan a biopsy out my stomach tell if i have parasitic disease
AnswerThe answer to this question depends on the species of parasite to which you refer since different species of parasites can affect the bloodstream and/or different organs of the body.
Therefore, the diagnostic tools and procedures used by healthcare practicioners for diagnosing parasitic infections in humans vary depending on the species of infective parasite.
For example, malaria is a parasitic disease which undergoes part of its lifecycle in the anopheles mosquito and part of its life cycle in the human. Malaria is transmitted to humans through the bite of the anopholes mosquito infected with the malarial parasite at a certain stage in its life cycle development. Once the parasite enters the bloodstream, it then invades the red blood cells and the cells of the liver where the parasite undergoes further development and completion of its life cycle.
To diagnose the specific species of malaria, the malarial parasite is identified under microscopic examination from a specially stained blood smear made from a blood specimen of an infected individual.
http://www.dpd.cdc.gov/dpdx/HTML/ImageLibrary/Malaria_il.htm
However, as another example, a different type of parasite, a specific species of roundworm, Anisakis simplex and Pseudoterranova decipien, cause a different type parasitic disease, Anasakiasis, which affects the gastrointestinal tract in humans.
Anasakiasis is caused by the accidental ingestion of the larvae of the nematodes Anisakis simplex and Pseudoterranova decipien from eating certain species of infected raw fish. Once ingested, the parasite then invades the lining of the stomach.
For this reason, Anasakiasis is in fact diagnosed by gastroscopy (examination of the stomach with a specialized scope). During gastroscopy, the larvae can be removed.
http://www.dpd.cdc.gov/dpdx/HTML/Anisakiasis.htm
