Pond itches? Water jitters? Dog pox? Duck fever? Or just good old swimmer’s itch and cercarial dermatitis?

I heard these terms as a kid spending summers at the lake in southern Germany. But it took me years to finally figure out what it was all about...

3 months ago · 👍 bookscorpion, noice65535

Actions

2 Replies

Oh, gross! · 3 months ago

Well, it s about Cercariae. These are tiny larvae of parasitic flatworms that live in water birds like ducks, geese, and swans. These larvae usually use freshwater snails as a middle host and become active in the water when it gets warm—around 20 °C or higher. When people swim or bathe in these waters, the larvae sometimes try to burrow into human skin, mistaking it for bird skin. But the larvae can’t survive in humans and get killed by the immune system. Even so, this causes a really itchy rash with red spots, pimples, and blisters, which is called swimmer’s itch or cercarial dermatitis. What do you think? · 3 months ago