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Treatments and drugs
By Mayo Clinic staff
Medications that kill tapeworms
The most common treatment for tapeworm infection involves oral medications that are toxic to the tapeworm. These drugs include praziquantel (Biltricide) or albendazole (Albenza), as well as niclosamide, although this drug is not available in the United States. The medication prescribed depends on the species of organism and site of infection involved.
The medications are poorly absorbed by your digestive tract and generally work by dissolving or attacking the adult tapeworm. Be aware that these drugs target the adult tapeworm, not the eggs, so take care to avoid reinfecting yourself. Always wash your hands after using the toilet and before eating.
Stool samples are generally checked at one month or three months after you've finished taking your medication, depending on what species of tapeworm you have. Successful treatment should render your stool free of tapeworm eggs, larvae or proglottids. The success rate is greater than 95 percent in people who receive appropriate treatment.
Anti-inflammatories if you have cysts
In cases in which the tapeworm infection has migrated to tissues outside your intestine, your doctor may prescribe an anti-inflammatory steroid to reduce any swelling caused by the development of cysts.
Surgery if you have life-threatening cysts
Surgery may be required to remove cysts that have developed in your liver, lungs or other organs, and organ transplantation may be your last resort in some cases.
