Respiratory nematodes in cat populations of Italy

Abstract

The occurrence of common respiratory parasites of domestic cats (the metastrongyloid "cat lungworm" Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and the trichuroid Capillaria aerophila) and of neglected respiratory nematodes of felids (Troglostrongylus brevior, Angiostrongylus chabaudi and Oslerus rostratus) was here evaluated in two and three geographical sites of Northern and Central Italy, respectively. In 2014-2015, individual fecal samples of 868 domestic cats were examined microscopically and genetically, and epidemiological data related to parasitic infections were evaluated as possible risk factors by binary logistic regression models. The most common parasite was A. abstrusus in both mono- and poli-specific infections, followed by T. brevior and C. aerophila, while cats scored negative for other parasites. Cats positive for A. abstrusus (1.9-17 % infection rate) and C. aerophila (0.9-4.8 % infection rate) were found in all examined sites, while cats scored positive for T. brevior (1-14.3 % infection rate) in four sites. Also, T. brevior was here found for the first time in a domestic cat from a mountainous area of Northern Italy. The occurrence of lungworms was statistically related to the presence of respiratory signs and more significant in cats with mixed infection by other lungworms and/or intestinal parasites. Cats living in site C of Central Italy resulted statistically more at risk of infection for lungworms than cats living in the other study sites, while animals ageing less than 1 year were at more risk for troglostrongylosis. Finally, the presence of lungworms was more significant in cats with mixed infection by other lungworms and/or intestinal parasites. These results are discussed under epidemiological and clinical points of views.

Clinical and Epidemiological Study on Aelurostrongylus Abstrusus Infection in Cats, Romania; Preliminary Data

“…These results are in accord with other similar studies that recently have reported, prevalence values of A. abstrusus infection in cats from Romanian varying from 5.6% (Mircean et al, 2010) to 14.16% (Giannelli et al, 2017). When comparing with other European countries, large variation for the prevalence rates of A. abstrusus are found, with values from 2% (Cyprus; Diakou et al, 2017), 8.3% in Denmark (Hansen et al, 2017) up to 17% in Italy (Di Cesare et al, 2015) or 50% in feral cats from Albany (Pennisi et al, 2015). A recent studies in 12 European countries performed by Giannelli et al (2017) showed that of the lungworm species, A. abstrusus was the most frequent (78.10%), while other lungworm species were found in lower prevalence, such as Troglostrongylus brevior (19.5%), Eucoleus aerophilus (14.8%) or Oslerus rostratus (3.8%).…”

Prevalence of helminth and coccidian parasites in Swedish outdoor cats and the first report of Aelurostrongylus abstrusus in Sweden: a coprological investigation

“…pregnant women and immunocompromised individuals are at high risk of being infected and develop diseases related to feline parasites [1]. Apart from the anecdotal cosmopolitan distribution of the most common feline endoparasitic helminths, like Toxocara cati , Toxascaris leonina , Taenia (Hydatygera) taeniaeformis and Aelurostrongylus abstrusus [2–4], little is known about the status of infection in outdoor cats in Sweden, since they are not routinely tested for parasitic infections. The majority of faecal samples submitted for parasitological examination comes from cats showing clinical signs such as expulsion of helminths and diarrhoea.…”

Occurrence of Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and Troglostrongylus brevior in domestic cats in Greece

“…Some of them, e.g. Troglostrongylus subcrenatus or Oslerus rostratus , still remain of minor and limited relevance under an epizootiological standpoint and are likely to be confined in their wild hosts [ 1 – 4 ]. Conversely, Troglostrongylus brevior has gained high attention in the past few years, for its clinical relevance, especially in young animals and for an apparent expansion in populations of domestic cats [ 1 , 4 , 5 ].…”