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Enterobius vermicularis, known as the pinworm or seatworm, is a roundworm parasite that has worldwide distribution and is commonly found in children. The adult female worm migrates out of the anus, usually at night, and deposits her eggs on the perianal area. The adult female (8 to 13 mm long) is occasionally found on the surface of a stool specimen or on the perianal skin. Since the eggs are usually deposited around the anus, they are not commonly found in feces and must be detected by other diagnostic techniques. Diagnosis of pinworm infection is usually based on the recovery of typical eggs, which are described as thick-shelled, football-shaped eggs with one slightly flattened side. Each egg often contains a fully developed embryo and will be infective within a few hours after being deposited.
The most striking symptom of this infection is pruritus, which is caused by the migration of the female worms from the anus onto the perianal skin before egg deposition. The sometimes intense itching results in scratching and occasional scarification. In most infected people, this may be the only symptom, and many individuals remain asymptomatic. Eosinophilia may or may not be present.
Infections tend to be more common in children and occur more often in females than in males. In heavily infected females, there may be a mucoid vaginal discharge, with subsequent migration of the worms into the vagina, uterus, fallopian tubes, appendix, or other body sites including the urinary tract, where they become encapsulated (1–8). Although tissue invasion
