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Prevention
By Mayo Clinic staffMethods to help prevent the spread of pinworm eggs or to prevent reinfection include:
- Wash in the morning. Because pinworms lay their eggs at night, washing the anal area in the morning can help reduce the number of pinworm eggs on your body. Showering may help avoid possible recontamination in bath water.
- Change underwear and bed linen daily. This helps remove eggs.
- Launder in hot water. Wash bedsheets, nightclothes, underwear, washcloths and towels in hot water to help kill pinworm eggs.
- Don't scratch. Avoid scratching the anal area. Trim your child's fingernails so there's less space for eggs to collect. Discourage nail biting.
- Clean toilet seats daily. This helps remove eggs.
- Wash your hands. To reduce your risk of getting or spreading an infection, wash your hands thoroughly after a bowel movement or changing a diaper and before eating.
References
- Parasites and health: Enterobiasis. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.dpd.cdc.gov/DPDx/html/Enterobiasis.htm. Accessed Feb. 16, 2012.
- Kliegman RM, et al. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 19th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2011. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/208746819-6/0/1608/0.html. Accessed Feb. 16, 2012.
- Fact sheet: Pinworm infection. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/pinworm/index.html. Accessed Feb. 16, 2012.
- Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2012. 5 Books in 1. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2012. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/about.do?about=true&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-05611-3..C2009-0-38601-8--TOP&isbn=978-0-323-05611-3&uniqId=291436269-101. Accessed Feb. 16, 2012.
- Pinworm infection. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/pinworm/Pages/default.aspx. Accessed Feb. 16, 2012.
- Gardner AS. Vulvovaginitis and other common childhood gynaecological conditions. Archives of Disease in Childhood: Education and Practice Edition. 2011;96:73.
- Stermer E, et al. Pruritus ani: An approach to an itching condition. Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition. 2009;48:513.
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