Objective: To study the role of whipworm infection in causing anaemia.
Methods: A study of 72 patients who had undergone colonoscopy for a period of 5 years from November 2009 to October 2014 was carried out inorder to find out the presence of parasitic worms during colonoscopy in these patients.
Results: Out of these 72 patients, parasitic worm was found in the colon in only one patient. The parasitic worm found in this patient was identified as whipworm or trichuris trichiura by its characteristic whip like shape. It has a short posterior thick part resembling the short handle of the whip and a long, thin anterior part resembling the distal long, thin part of the whip. In our patient with whipworm infection anaemia was not present [(haemoglobin 14.4 g%).
Conclusion: Our patient was also found to have whipworm in the colon while doing colonoscopy. But anaemia was not present in our patient.
Adult whipworm, trichuris trichiura, anaemia in whipworm infection,colonoscopy.
