Exams and Tests

• If a person suspects pinworms but does not see them, the "Scotch tape test" can be used.
  
  
  • It is best done at night during the characteristic intense itching or early in the morning before any bathing or washing.
    
    
  • Wrap a piece of cellophane tape around a tongue depressor, sticky side out, and press it to the skin around the anus to collect any eggs.
    
    
  • Take the tape to a doctor, who will put it under a microscope to look for pinworm eggs.
    
    
  • The doctor may ask the person to use several pieces of tape to increase the likelihood of seeing the eggs. A single specimen will detect approximately 50% of cases; 90% of cases will be detected if the test is repeated three times.
    
    
  • Blood tests are not necessary to establish the diagnosis of pinworm infection.
  
  
• The doctor may decide based upon the patient's symptoms that pinworms are present and may treat with medication without doing any tests.
  
  
• If one person in a household has pinworms and other people in the household have the same symptoms, it is not necessary to test everyone before treating.