Pinworm Medicine & Treatment for Adults

Pinworm medicine for adults is the same as for children: pyrantel pamoate, which is sold over the counter, or mebendazole, which needs a prescription after a clinician's review. Treatment for adults also means confirming the diagnosis, involving everyone in the household at the same time, and careful hygiene, because reinfection from a child, a partner or the home is a common reason symptoms come back.

This page is written for adults treating themselves. For the full side-by-side of the two medicines, see pinworm medicine: OTC or prescription?

Can adults get pinworms?

Yes. The CDC calls pinworm the most common worm infection in the United States, and says anyone can get it. It is most common in school-age and preschool children, but the adults who live with them or care for them are among the groups most often infected: parents, grandparents, partners and childcare workers. People living in long-term care facilities and other institutional settings are also at higher risk. The CDC notes that pinworm often infects more than one person in a household.

Pinworm is not a sign of a dirty home. The eggs are microscopic and spread easily in clean households.

How adults catch pinworm

Pinworm spreads when tiny eggs are swallowed. While an infected person sleeps, female worms lay eggs on the skin around the anus. The eggs get onto fingers during scratching and from there onto bedding, pajamas, towels, toilet seats, food and other surfaces. According to the CDC, eggs can survive on objects for two to three weeks if they are not washed or cleaned away.

For adults, the common routes are:

• Caring for an infected child: helping with the toilet, changing diapers, or handling pajamas and bedding.
• Sharing a bed, towels or a bathroom with someone who is infected, including a partner.
• Reinfecting yourself: scratching during the night and then touching your mouth or food.

Symptoms adults notice

• Itching around the anus, usually worse at night
• Trouble sleeping or restlessness because of the itching
• Red, irritated skin from scratching, which can sometimes become infected
• Occasionally, in women, irritation around the vagina if worms move there
• Sometimes, tiny white thread-like worms about the size of a staple, seen around the anus, on underwear or in the toilet (see white worms in stool)

The CDC notes that some people have no symptoms at all, which is one reason pinworm moves quietly through a household. Anal itching in adults also has other common causes, such as hemorrhoids, skin conditions, fungal infections and irritation from soaps or wipes. Our guide to an itchy anus at night explains how to tell them apart. Ringworm, despite its name, is a fungal skin rash rather than a worm; see pinworm vs ringworm. If you have not seen a worm and no one at home has a confirmed infection, it is worth confirming the diagnosis before you treat.

Confirming it before you treat

The most common test is the "tape test": clear tape is pressed against the skin around the anus first thing in the morning, before using the toilet or showering, so the eggs can be seen under a microscope. Your clinician or lab will give you the collection instructions. Our pinworm tape test guide explains each step and what the results mean. The CDC also describes looking for worms around the anus two to three hours after the person falls asleep, and checking samples from under the fingernails. For an adult, a partner's help makes the first of these much easier.

Stool tests are not generally used for pinworm. The eggs are laid on the skin, not passed in stool, so a stool sample usually misses them.

Treatment options for adults

Adults in the United States have two common choices.

Over-the-counter pyrantel pamoate. It is sold on the pharmacy shelf and labeled for pinworm. If you use it, follow the package directions exactly, and ask a pharmacist or clinician if you are unsure whether it suits you.

Prescription mebendazole. It needs a clinician's review. Its labeling covers pinworm and three other intestinal worms (whipworm, common roundworm and hookworm), so it can make sense when another worm is possible, when the diagnosis is unclear, or when treatment was done properly and symptoms keep returning.

We don't publish doses or schedules on this site. The package label or your prescriber sets those, including whether any repeat round is needed.

The full comparison, including how each medicine works, is on pinworm medicine: OTC or prescription?, and mebendazole information covers the prescription option in more depth.

If you are pregnant or breastfeeding

Don't start any pinworm medicine on your own if you are pregnant, might be pregnant or are breastfeeding. The CDC notes that the safety of pinworm medicines has not been studied in pregnant women, and the over-the-counter package also tells you to ask a health professional first. Talk with your obstetric clinician or midwife, who can weigh the risks and benefits for you. Careful hygiene is safe to start right away.

Treating the household, including your partner

The CDC advises treating the infected person, their household members and their caregivers at the same time. For adults, that means:

• Treat everyone at once, not one person at a time.
• Tell a partner who shares your bed, even if they have no symptoms.
• Children in the home need their own plan. Follow the package directions for their age or ask their pediatrician. Our service is for adults only.
• At work, especially in childcare, schools or care homes, careful handwashing is what protects the people around you.

Hygiene steps that stop reinfection

• Wash your hands with soap and warm water after using the toilet, after changing diapers, and before eating or preparing food.
• Keep fingernails short and try not to scratch the area.
• Shower in the morning to wash away eggs laid overnight.
• Change underwear and pajamas every day.
• Wash bedding, towels and nightclothes in hot water, and don't shake them out first, so eggs are not spread through the air.
• Keep these habits up for the weeks after treatment, since that is how long eggs can survive in the home.

When to see a clinician

• You are not sure it is pinworm.
• Symptoms continue after you have finished treatment exactly as directed, or keep coming back.
• You have belly pain, weight loss, blood in your stool, or other symptoms that don't fit pinworm.
• You are pregnant or breastfeeding, have liver disease, or take other regular medicines.
• You have traveled or had other exposures that make a different worm possible. See intestinal worms in adults for the other worms adults can get.

Getting a prescription through Get It Prescribed

If you and a provider decide prescription treatment is right, Get It Prescribed connects adults with an independent licensed provider online. The service is available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and some states require a live phone or video visit, which you can check on the availability page. The cost is a one-time $50 provider consultation fee, plus $3.50 per capsule for mebendazole if a prescription is issued, with the quantity decided by the provider. No prescription is guaranteed, and the provider may recommend an in-person visit or testing instead. Every step is on how it works, and known side effects are on mebendazole side effects.

The mebendazole dispensed through Get It Prescribed is a 222 mg capsule prepared by a licensed compounding pharmacy. It is a compounded preparation. It is not FDA-approved, it has not been reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness or quality, and it is not a generic of or substitute for the brand-name mebendazole chewable tablet.

This article is general education, not medical advice. It does not replace an evaluation by a licensed clinician who knows your history.

Related questions

What medicine is used for pinworms in adults?

In the United States, two medicines are labeled for pinworm: pyrantel pamoate, which is sold over the counter, and mebendazole, which needs a prescription. The package label or the prescriber sets the dose and whether any repeat round is needed, and a pharmacist or clinician can help you decide which suits you. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding or have other health conditions, talk with a clinician before starting either one.

Can adults get pinworms from their kids?

Yes, and it is one of the most common ways adults are infected. Eggs pass from a child's hands, pajamas and bedding to the adults who care for them. The CDC advises treating the whole household and caregivers at the same time.

What is the best pinworm treatment for adults?

There is no single best choice for everyone, and this site does not rank one medicine above another. Over-the-counter pyrantel pamoate is sold on the pharmacy shelf for pinworm. Prescription mebendazole needs a clinician's review and may be considered when the diagnosis is unclear, another worm is possible, or the infection keeps coming back. Hygiene and involving the household are part of any plan, and a pharmacist or clinician can help you decide.

Can pinworms spread between partners?

Yes. The CDC lists household members and close contacts among the people most often infected, and partners usually share a bed, towels and a bathroom. If you are being treated, tell your partner so they can be treated at the same time.

Can I take pinworm medicine while pregnant?

Don't start any pinworm medicine during pregnancy or breastfeeding without talking to a clinician first. The CDC notes that the safety of these medicines has not been studied in pregnant women, so a clinician should weigh the choice with you.

Why do my pinworms keep coming back?

Reinfection is a common reason. Pinworm eggs can survive in the home for two to three weeks, and an untreated household member can pass the infection back. If symptoms keep returning, see a clinician, who can confirm the diagnosis and decide on next steps.

Sources

• CDC: About Pinworm Infection — who gets pinworm, how it spreads, diagnosis, and treating the household.
• CDC: Clinical Overview of Pinworm Infection — testing, treatment options and precautions in pregnancy, for clinicians.
• MedlinePlus: Pinworms — National Library of Medicine overview of pinworm infection.
• MedlinePlus: Pyrantel — consumer drug information for the over-the-counter pinworm medicine.
• MedlinePlus: Mebendazole — consumer drug information from the National Library of Medicine.
• DailyMed: mebendazole chewable tablet prescribing information — prescribing information for the brand product.
• FDA: Compounding and the FDA — Questions and Answers — what compounded preparations are and how they are regulated.