Endoparasitic infections in dogs from rural areas in the Lobos District, Buenos Aires province, Argentina Infecçóes endoparasitas em cães de áreas rurais do distrito de Lobos, província de Buenos Aires, Argentina

• Main Authors: Marcela Cecilia Dopchiz, Carla Mariela Lavallén, Roberto Bongiovanni, Patricia Verónica Gonzalez, Celina Elissondo, Francisco Yannarella, Guillermo Denegri
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Colégio Brasileiro de Parasitologia Veterinaria 2013-01-01
• Series: Revista Brasileira de Parasitologia Veterinária
• Subjects: Parasitas; zoonoses; áreas rurais; cães; Parasites; rural areas; dogs
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1984-29612013000100092

Dogs are definite hosts for several zoonotic helminthes and protozoan. Rural areas from the Lobos District in the northeast of Buenos Aires province, Argentina, are mainly used for livestock activity, increasing in this way the number of dogs on farms as well as the human risk of parasitic infections. The aims of this research were to evaluate the endoparasitic infections in dogs from farms in the Lobos District and analyze their zoonotic importance as well as several risk practices and habits of the rural population. Forty-two dog fecal samples obtained in 21 farms were analyzed through coproparasitological methods and coproantigen tests, which resulted in an overall parasite prevalence of 69.05% and 80.95% of the parasitized farms. The most frequent parasites were Trichuris vulpis and Eucoleus aerophila (26.19%), Echinococcus granulosus (19.05%), Uncinaria stenocephala and coccids (14.29%). The analysis of epidemiological files showed several habits of the rural population considered as risk factors associated with the presence of fecal samples parasitized and the presence of E. granulosus on the farms. It is clear that people involved with the farms studied were exposed to several helminthes that could cause serious diseases like cystic echinococcosis, which can become an important public health issue and affect the economy worldwide.<br>Os c&#227;es s&#227;o hospedeiros definitivos de v&#225;rios helmintos e protozo&#225;rios zoon&#243;ticos. As &#225;reas rurais do distrito de Lobos, no nordeste da prov&#237;ncia de Buenos Aires, Argentina, destinam-se principalmente &#224; atividade pecu&#225;ria aumentando desta forma o n&#250;mero de c&#227;es em fazendas, bem como o risco humano de infec&#231;&#245;es parasit&#225;rias. Os objetivos desta pesquisa foram avaliar as infec&#231;&#245;es endoparasitas em c&#227;es de fazendas do distrito de Lobos e analisar a sua import&#226;ncia zoon&#243;tica, bem como as pr&#225;ticas de risco e h&#225;bitos da popula&#231;&#227;o rural. Quarenta e duas amostras de fezes de c&#227;es obtidos em 21 fazendas foram analisadas pelos m&#233;todos coproparasitol&#243;gicos e testes de coproant&#237;genos, resultando numa preval&#234;ncia de parasitas de 69,05% e 80,95% das propriedades parasitados. Os parasitas mais frequentes foram Trichuris vulpis e Eucoleus aerophila (26,19%), Echinococcus granulosus (19,05%), Uncinaria stenocephala e cocc&#237;deos (14,29%). A an&#225;lise dos arquivos epidemiol&#243;gicos mostraram v&#225;rios h&#225;bitos da popula&#231;&#227;o rural como fatores de risco associados com a presen&#231;a de amostras fecais parasitadas e a presen&#231;a de E. granulosus em propriedades rurais. &#201; evidente que as pessoas das fazendas estudadas foram expostas a v&#225;rios helmintos que podem causar doen&#231;as graves como equinococose c&#237;stica, que constitui importante problema de sa&#250;de p&#250;blica e econ&#244;mico a n&#237;vel mundial.