Diphyllobothrium is a genus of tapeworm that can cause Diphyllobothriasis in humans through consumption of raw or undercooked fish. The principal species causing diphyllobothriosis is Diphyllobothrium , known as the fish tapeworm. The fish tapeworm has a long documented history of infecting people who eats fish on a regular and especially those who consume raw or undercooked fish. In the 1970s, most of the known cases of diphyllobothriasis came from Europe (5 million cases), and Asia (4 million cases). There is no specific date when Diphyllobothrium species were discovered in humans, but it is clear that diphyllobothriasis has been in human populations for a very long time. Due to the changing diet habits in many parts of the world, cases of diphyllobothriasis have recently been documented in non-endemic areas
The adult worm is composed of 3 fairly distinct segments: the head, the neck,…show more content… But, these small intermediate hosts can be eaten by larger predators such as; trout, perch, and pike. By this happening the sparganum can go to the musculature of the larger predator, which can be fish and mammals. Then the human can catch the diphyllobothariasis disease by eating the infected host fish raw or undercooked. After ingestion of the infected fish, the plerocercoids develop into immature adults and then into mature adult. The adult worms can reach more than 10 meters long. Several of tapeworms regularly detach from the main body of the worm (that’s where they get their name tapeworm from).They then release immature eggs in fresh water to start the cycle all over again. A tapeworm can live up to 20
