Opisthorchosis is a topical health problem (problem overview and analysis)

Abstract

The purpose of the research is analyzing literature sources to establish the role of opisthorchosis in health care and assessing the relevance of histological and histochemical methods in determining the efficacy of drugs against helminths which are causative agents of opisthorchosis.Materials and methods. We analyzed literature sources on the study of opisthorchosis, its pathogen spread and its significance for public health. We also reviewed the official documentation of the annual reports presented on the official websites.Results and discussion. In 2018, more than 19.0 thousand cases of opisthorchosis were recorded in the country (rate is 12.99 per 100 thousand population), which made up 79.5% of all recorded bio-helminthosis in the population. Opisthorchosis is characterized by long course and proceeds with frequent exacerbations. The most serious complication is cancer in the liver, bile ducts and pancreas, which are organs of opisthorchis parasitism. The works of many authors reveal the connection and high incidence of cholangiocarcinoma in patients with opisthorchosis in countries with endemic sites of Opisthorchiidae family representative’s infection. Long-term opisthorchosis infection reduces the efficacy of anthelmintic therapy and leads to the appearance of the disease recurrent forms. Opisthorchis viverrini was officially recognized as a Group 1 biological carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer in 2009. The carcinogenic role of O. felineus has not yet been sufficiently studied. However, life cycles, morphology and localization in the human body of O. viverrini and O. felineus are similar. In the list of established medicinal products with opisthorchocidal action, special attention and interest are paid to herbal products. Histological and histochemical research methods confirmed the efficacy against such herbal preparations as ecorsol, erlim and artemisin.