Cercaria in the bathing lake: More and more cases lead to itching and wheals
Created: 06/23/2022, 02:00 p.m
By: Jasmin Pospiech
In summer, many people are drawn to bathing lakes and rivers.
But researchers are sounding the alarm: there are flukes lurking that can penetrate the skin.
Hamburg – There was a big outcry recently: a worrying case in a popular natural outdoor pool in Hamburg caused a stir in the media across Germany.
Accordingly, a tumult is said to have arisen there, since cercaria have spread in the water.
As a result, children ran out of the water crying and panicking, many are said to have had severe skin reactions.
Researchers believe that such cases will increase in the future.
Cercaria in the bathing lake: More and more cases lead to itching and wheals
Flukes - or cercariae - can cause dermatitis in swimmers and bathers.
They penetrate several millimeters into the skin of those affected.
(kreiszeitung.de assembly) © N. Helmer/NHM Vienna/Moritz Frankenberg/dpa
This year, too, the parasites are said to be increasingly up to mischief in German bathing lakes and rivers.
These are larvae of the fluke, which according to the Lower Saxony State Health Office penetrate the human skin within a few minutes, settle there and cause itching, reddened skin and wheals.
The problem with this is that the cercaria are virtually invisible and cannot be seen with the naked eye.
Therefore, one cannot predict where they will appear next.
This only becomes apparent at the latest when bathers are infested.
If this happens, the responsible health authority must be informed immediately.
The only clue is that the worms spread via waterfowl in shallow water.
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Cercaria in the bathing lake also infest animals and humans
In fact, the cercaria prefer them as hosts, burrow into their skin, develop, and their eggs are then shed in the birds' droppings.
Freshwater snails usually serve as intermediate hosts for the larvae, in which they mature for two to three months and then swarm out again as cercaria and look out for waterfowl.
However, people can also be infested during the search.
There they then trigger swimmer's dermatitis or cercaria dermatitis in the body.
Eventually, itchy, red rashes form all over the body.
Depending on the immune system of those affected, these are stronger or weaker.
In particularly bad cases, fever can also occur.
Cercaria in the bathing lake: skin rash annoying but harmless
In principle, however, swimmer's rash is harmless and its symptoms usually subside after ten to 20 days.
Still, the increase in cases is worrying.
Eventually, cercaria will multiply as soon as water temperatures rise to 20 degrees or more.
According to researchers, climate change is largely responsible for the proliferation of cercaria and algal plague in many places.
The article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication. In no way does it replace a visit to the doctor. Unfortunately, our editors are not allowed to answer individual questions about clinical pictures.
