Geohelminth contamination of public areas and epidemiological risk factors in Curitiba, Brazil

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the frequency of geohelminthic contamination of public parks and squares in Curitiba, state of Paraná, Brazil, between August and December 2010. A total of 345 samples were collected from 69 sandboxes in different areas and were tested using the Faust, Lutz and Baermann parasitological techniques. Potential risk factors associated with soil contamination were also analyzed. A total of 36% of the samples (124/345) were positive for helminths and 65.2% of the areas (45/69) were classified as contaminated in one or more samples. The most commonly identified parasite eggs were Ancylostoma sp. (14.5%; 50/345); followed by Toxocara sp. (9.6%; 33/345) and the Strongyloidea superfamily (excluding hookworms) (2.3%; 8/345). The analysis on the epidemiological risk factors indicated that the presence of dogs and feces in the sandboxes increased the chances of contamination of the site. Use of fences had a protective positive impact that reduced soil contamination. Health education programs should be applied within the community to minimize the risk of human contact with dogs' feces. Use of fencing in these areas is highly recommended to prevent or reduce the users' contact with animal excrement.

Invasive forms of canine endoparasites as a potential threat to public health – A review and own studies

“…The most infected are stray dogs [5]. However, the awareness of owners about the potential environmental contamination their pets can cause with invasive forms of parasites that may lead to severe diseases in humans is insufficient, similar to the awareness of the need for developing hygienic habits [2,4,6,7,8]. The development of modern human settlements reduces green zone areas.…”

“…Dog owners are forced to walk their pets in small areas that are frequently visited by humans, such as parks or beaches [4,7,9,10]. This leads to permanent contamination of the public space with invasive forms of parasites that colonize the canine gastrointestinal tract and lead to the persistence of this contamination [3,4,9,10,11,12,13]. Eggs and larvae of geohelminths are a severe threat to children [9,12,14].…”

“…Eggs and larvae of geohelminths are a severe threat to children [9,12,14]. This threat is the greatest in parks and in playgrounds [4,10,12,14,15,16].…”

CONTAMINAÇÃO AMBIENTAL POR OVOS DE Ancylostoma spp. E Toxocara spp. EM ÁREAS DE SEIS PRAÇAS PÚBLICAS DO MUNICÍPIO DE VALENÇA, ESTADO DO RIO DE JANEIRO

“…As técnicas de Hoffman e de Willis são as mais tradicionalmente utilizadas respectivamente para ovos pesados e leves (KAPLAN et al, 2004;SPRENGER;GREEN;MOLENTO, 2014). No entanto, Corrêa, Souza e Lisbôa (2015), realizando estudo para detecção de ovos de parasitas em fezes de cães nas em praças públicas, verificaram resultado superior utilizando a técnica de centrífugo-flutuação em comparação a técnica de Willis.…”

Automated Diagnosis of Canine Gastrointestinal Parasites Using Image Analysis

“…Because canine intestinal parasites are considered cosmopolitan, they present a significant zoonotic threat to public health [1,2]. In regions of developing countries with tropical, subtropical, and equatorial climates, four genera of parasites among metazoan and protozoan stand out as highly prevalent in dog infection: Toxocara spp., Ancylostoma spp., Trichuris spp., and Giardia spp.…”