Comments on: Quantitative Egg Counts and Hookworm Burden http://waitingforthecure.com/I/2009/09/18/quantitative-egg-counts-and-hookworm-burden/ ... a day in the life of Crohn's disease ... Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:10:23 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: Jasper Lawrence http://waitingforthecure.com/I/2009/09/18/quantitative-egg-counts-and-hookworm-burden/comment-page-1/#comment-640 Jasper Lawrence Sat, 26 Sep 2009 02:55:27 +0000 http://waitingforthecure.com/I/?p=781#comment-640 Embryo output varies by diet, drug use, age of worm population and I am certain other factors as yet undetermined. Without having any of the sites or studies you link to, recently, I can say that unless they controlled for each of these factors (which would mean other studies to provide the data to do such controls) they are largely meaningless for someone trying to estimate their small worm population. With science one has to read critically and consider the problem they were trying to solve and the bias they bring to their research. Most of the research into hookworm has been with their eradication in mind, or on controlling the harm they do in areas where people cannot afford the $2 pill required to clear an infection. As such the studies do not have to provide the precision you seek. They just need to identify the most at-risk individuals so they can focus health and infrastructure resources. Crude measures are all that are required. You will see a sharp drop off in embryo production around month 12-18 after your initial infection, if the literature I have read is correct. Obviously when studying people in the third world one has no way of determining the age of each individual worm they host, this is just one example of the confounding variables that render this research meaningless for your purposes. But, you could provide a data set by tracking your embryo out put over the next two years, and by recording your dietary intake and use of OTC and prescription drugs. That would be a very valuable data set, even though based on one individual, for it would identify (possibly) the impact of various drugs and foods on worm health, embryo output. You might also disprove the "truth" that embryo output declines by approximately 50% between 12-18 months post infection. I doubt that such an effect is universal for instance, as we have observed so much variation in every other factor associated with hookworm infection in the 100+ people we have treated so far. No mention is made in any parasitology text I have read, or in any of the studies, either. Which, generally, examine the reactions of at most a few dozen individuals and more commonly just one or two. Your Crohn's disease is an adaptation to helminths, so any data you gather will likely only apply to that subset of people with Crohn's who share your genotype and phenotype, as well as, possibly, various environmental factors. Diet as just one example. Keep it up, it is energy and determination like yours that changes the world. Jasper Embryo output varies by diet, drug use, age of worm population and I am certain other factors as yet undetermined. Without having any of the sites or studies you link to, recently, I can say that unless they controlled for each of these factors (which would mean other studies to provide the data to do such controls) they are largely meaningless for someone trying to estimate their small worm population.

With science one has to read critically and consider the problem they were trying to solve and the bias they bring to their research. Most of the research into hookworm has been with their eradication in mind, or on controlling the harm they do in areas where people cannot afford the $2 pill required to clear an infection. As such the studies do not have to provide the precision you seek. They just need to identify the most at-risk individuals so they can focus health and infrastructure resources. Crude measures are all that are required.

You will see a sharp drop off in embryo production around month 12-18 after your initial infection, if the literature I have read is correct. Obviously when studying people in the third world one has no way of determining the age of each individual worm they host, this is just one example of the confounding variables that render this research meaningless for your purposes.

But, you could provide a data set by tracking your embryo out put over the next two years, and by recording your dietary intake and use of OTC and prescription drugs. That would be a very valuable data set, even though based on one individual, for it would identify (possibly) the impact of various drugs and foods on worm health, embryo output. You might also disprove the “truth” that embryo output declines by approximately 50% between 12-18 months post infection. I doubt that such an effect is universal for instance, as we have observed so much variation in every other factor associated with hookworm infection in the 100+ people we have treated so far. No mention is made in any parasitology text I have read, or in any of the studies, either. Which, generally, examine the reactions of at most a few dozen individuals and more commonly just one or two.

Your Crohn’s disease is an adaptation to helminths, so any data you gather will likely only apply to that subset of people with Crohn’s who share your genotype and phenotype, as well as, possibly, various environmental factors. Diet as just one example.

Keep it up, it is energy and determination like yours that changes the world.

Jasper

]]> By: admin http://waitingforthecure.com/I/2009/09/18/quantitative-egg-counts-and-hookworm-burden/comment-page-1/#comment-637 admin Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:02:25 +0000 http://waitingforthecure.com/I/?p=781#comment-637 Could you post a link to the Puerto Rican study? Could you post a link to the Puerto Rican study?

]]> By: Philip Coelho http://waitingforthecure.com/I/2009/09/18/quantitative-egg-counts-and-hookworm-burden/comment-page-1/#comment-636 Philip Coelho Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:52:05 +0000 http://waitingforthecure.com/I/?p=781#comment-636 The Puerto Rican hookworm study said their count was "low," and it is a study that is almost 50 years old (since publication). I think that an estimate that is safely conservative is in the low three digits (epg). If it were much lower, then the worm count would be higher, implying a much greater blood loss to the host. The Puerto Rican hookworm study said their count was “low,” and it is a study that is almost 50 years old (since publication). I think that an estimate that is safely conservative is in the low three digits (epg). If it were much lower, then the worm count would be higher, implying a much greater blood loss to the host.

]]> By: Mike S http://waitingforthecure.com/I/2009/09/18/quantitative-egg-counts-and-hookworm-burden/comment-page-1/#comment-635 Mike S Mon, 21 Sep 2009 20:24:21 +0000 http://waitingforthecure.com/I/?p=781#comment-635 You should consider writing and self-publishing a "how to" book on helminthic therapy. Your personal experience, combined with seemingly extensive knowledge and large amounts of research that you've done would be so useful for people who are interesting in experimenting with therapy--and you certainly have an ability to write well. Just this issue of doing worm egg counts from an amateur (assumed non science trained) would be valuable on its own! You should consider writing and self-publishing a “how to” book on helminthic therapy. Your personal experience, combined with seemingly extensive knowledge and large amounts of research that you’ve done would be so useful for people who are interesting in experimenting with therapy–and you certainly have an ability to write well. Just this issue of doing worm egg counts from an amateur (assumed non science trained) would be valuable on its own!

]]>