Pinworm (parasite)

The pinworm (species Enterobius vermicularis), also known as threadworm (in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand) or seatworm, is a parasitic worm. It is a nematode (roundworm) and a common intestinal parasite or helminth, especially in humans. The medical condition associated with pinworm infestation is known as pinworm infection (enterobiasis) (a type of helminthiasis) or less precisely as oxyuriasis in reference to the family Oxyuridae.

This article is about the organism. For the infection, see Pinworm infection.
This article is about the nematode of the family Enterobius, known as pinworm in the US. For the different nematode known as pinworm in the rest of the world, see Strongyloides stercoralis.
"Oxyuris" redirects here. For the genus of nematodes, see Oxyuris (nematode).

Pinworm
Pinworms (U.S.)/Threadworms (U.K.) (Enterobius vermicularis)
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Nematoda
Class: Chromadorea
Order: Rhabditida
Family: Oxyuridae
Genus: Enterobius
Baird, 1853
Species
  • Enterobius anthropopitheci (Gedoelst, 1916) (chimpanzee pinworm)
  • Enterobius atelis Cameron, 1929
  • Enterobius brevicauda Sandosham, 1950
  • Enterobius buckleyi Sandosham, 1950
  • Enterobius callithricis Solomon, 1932
  • Enterobius duplicidens Buckley, 1931
  • Enterobius emodensis
  • Enterobius foecunda (Linstow, 1879)
  • Enterobius gregorii (Hugot, 1983) (disputed)
  • Enterobius inglisi
  • Enterobius interlabiata Sandosham, 1950
  • Enterobius lagothricis Buckley, 1931
  • Enterobius lemuris Baehr, 1935
  • Enterobius lerouxi Sandosham, 1950
  • Enterobius macaci
  • Enterobius magnispicula
  • Enterobius paraguerezae
  • Enterobius parallela (Linstow, 1908)
  • Enterobius pesteri
  • Enterobius pitheci Cameron, 1929
  • Enterobius polyoon (Linstow, 1909)
  • Enterobius pygatrichus
  • Enterobius schaefferae
  • Enterobius shriveri
  • Enterobius vermicularis (Linnaeus, 1758) (human pinworm)
  • Enterobius yagoi Sutton, 1979

Other than human, Enterobius vermicularis were reported from bonnet macaque. Other species seen in primates include Enterobius buckleyi in Orangutan and Enterobius anthropopitheci in chimpanzee. Enterobius vermicularis is common in human children and transmitted via the faecal-oral route. Humans are the only natural host of Enterobius vermicularis. Enterobius gregorii, another human species is morphologically indistinguishable from Enterobius vermicularis except the spicule size. Throughout this article, the word "pinworm" refers to Enterobius. In British usage, however, pinworm refers to Strongyloides, while Enterobius is called threadworm.

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