Survey on equine cryptosporidiosis in Poland and the possibility of zoonotic transmission

The present study was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection in horses used for recreational riding as well as in humans. A total of 106 faecal specimens from horses raised in 4 localities of western Poland and 6 stool samples from 3 persons who had constant or sporadi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine 1999, Vol.6 (2), p.161-165
Main Authors: Majewska, A C, Werner, A, Sulima, P, Luty, T
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Antigens, Protozoan - analysis
Cryptosporidiosis
Cryptosporidiosis - epidemiology
Cryptosporidiosis - parasitology
Cryptosporidiosis - transmission
Cryptosporidium
Cryptosporidium parvum - isolation & purification
Enzyme immunoassay
Epidemiology
Farms
Feces
Feces - parasitology
Female
Horse Diseases - epidemiology
Horse Diseases - parasitology
Horse Diseases - transmission
Horses
Humans
Immunoenzyme Techniques
Infections
Male
Morphometry
Oocysts
Parasites
Poland - epidemiology
Prevalence
Zoonoses - epidemiology
Zoonoses - transmission
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Summary:The present study was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection in horses used for recreational riding as well as in humans. A total of 106 faecal specimens from horses raised in 4 localities of western Poland and 6 stool samples from 3 persons who had constant or sporadic contact with horses were screened microscopically for oocysts using modified Ziehl-Neelsen staining. Enzyme immunoassay (EIA) was additionally used for the detection of coproantigen in human stool samples as well as in 43 randomly selected horse faecal samples. The overall infection rate of horses determined by microscopic examination was 9.4%. To our knowledge, this is the first report of cryptosporidial infection in horses in Poland. The infection was identified only in adult horses raised on 2 of 4 examined farms. The intensity of equine cryptosporidial infection was light, as a rule. None of the infected horses appeared clinically ill. The real overall infection rate in horses could be higher. Among 43 faecal specimens additionally processed by EIA, 5 samples were positive both for oocysts and coproantigen, whereas in 7 faecal samples only the parasite coproantigen was detected. The morphometric analysis of oocysts indicated that the horses were most probably infected with C. parvum. Of 3 examined persons, cryptosporidial infection was identified in a rider who had sporadic contact with horses.
ISSN:1232-1966
1898-2263