Tapeworms in horses, specifically Anoplocephala perfoliata, are parasitic flatworms that inhabit the equine gastrointestinal tract, primarily the ileocecal junction. These parasites are transmitted via oribatid mites, which serve as intermediate hosts, and are ingested by horses during grazing. Tapeworms can contribute to gastrointestinal disturbances and are associated with conditions such as colic and intestinal blockage. Diagnosis typically involves serological tests or fecal examinations to detect the presence of tapeworm-specific antigens or eggs. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that investigate the epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and impact of tapeworm infections on equine health.
Traversa D, Fichi G, Campigli M, Rondolotti A, Iorio R, Proudman CJ, Pellegrini D, Perrucci S.Anoplocephala perfoliata (Cestoda, Cyclophyllidea), the commonest intestinal tapeworm of horses, can cause colic, intussusceptions, ileal impactions and intestinal perforations. Common diagnostic techniques for A. perfoliata infection, i.e. coprology and serology, show inherent limitations in terms of sensitivity and specificity and new approaches are thus required. Hence, the present study compared the reliability of coprological, serological (i.e. ELISA) and molecular (i.e. nested PCR) methods in detecting A. perfoliata infection in naturally infected horses and in horses treated with a comb...
Kjaer LN, Lungholt MM, Nielsen MK, Olsen SN, Maddox-Hyttel C.Increased knowledge is needed to assist in the interpretation of presently available diagnostic techniques for infection by the tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata in horses. Objective: The suggested cut-off level of an A. perfoliata specific ELISA may not adequately reflect the actual infection level. Hence, faecal egg counts may be a more useful diagnostic test for individual horses than previously reported. Methods: Eighty-four horses admitted for slaughter at a Danish abattoir were examined for the presence of A. perfoliata. The number of tapeworms, their stage of development and gross patho...
Boswinkel M, Sloet van Oldruitenborgh-Oosterbaan MM.The importance of Anoplocephala perfoliata in horses with colic was studied in 139 horses referred for colic and 139 control horses with no signs of colic for at least three years. The serodiagnostic method of Proudman and Trees, which measures the level of A. perfoliata antibody, was used to detect A. perfoliata infection. Thirty-two horses were examined at necropsy, to determine whether the presence of A. perfoliata in the ileocaecal region was associated with the A. perfoliata antibody level. The mean A. perfoliata antibody level was significantly higher in horses with colic than in horses ...
Slocombe JO, Heine J, Barutzki D, Slacek B.The aim of this study with horses and a few ponies naturally infected with tapeworms was to confirm in clinical trials the efficacy and safety of a praziquantel horse paste 9%. The field trials were conducted in 1997 and 1998 in Canada, France, Germany and New Zealand. A secondary aim of the study in Canada was to determine if a 24h post-treatment fecal sample provides the best estimate of the prevalence of tapeworms in horses when using a fecal examination technique. Fecal samples were taken from each of 1062 animals at least three times pre-treatment (PRT). In Canada, fecal samples were exam...
Roelfstra L, Betschart B, Pfister K.In a study on the seasonal dynamics of the gastro-intestinal nematode egg production in horses, one breeding farm also revealed a particularly high prevalence of Anoplocephala spp. infection. Consequently, this farm was chosen for analysing the seasonal pattern of the tapeworm egg excretion over a one year period in order to establish the most favourable periods for an appropriate and successful cestocidal treatment. The seasonal analysis showed a significantly higher (p < 0.05) Anoplocephala spp. egg excretion between July and October, i.e. during the second part of the grazing period. This r...
Romaniuk K, Reszka K, Lasota E.On the turn of July and August the prevalence and intensity of internal parasites of cattle, deer, and primitive Polish horses were estimated. It was determined, that all groups of animals were infected with parasites. The prevalence and intensity of infection were diversified and depended on the animal species, breed, age, and even sex. For instance, dairy cows of lowland black-and-white breed were six times stronger infected than Polish red breed, despite using the same pasture and the same cowshed. Nematodes and coccidia were present in calves using small, frequently wet, calf-runs and at h...
Pereira JR, Vianna SS.Over a period of 12 years, from 1988 to 2000, a total of 20 individual equines (16 horses and 4 mules) were selected at random, from 10 municipalities in the Paraíba Valley, in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, and then subjected to necropsy for collection of gastrointestinal worms. Individual samples of 10% of the intestinal contents were also taken for counting and identifying the species present, and to establish the prevalence of worms in equine species in the Paraíba Valley. In the sample considered, the presence of parasites ranged from 155 to 1249 worms. Tapeworms (Cestoidea) were pres...
Marchiondo AA, TerHune TN, Herrick RL.Pyrantel pamoate paste (19.13% w/w pyrantel base) for the treatment of tapeworm, Anoplocephala spp was evaluated for target animal safety and tolerance in horses treated orally at 0, 1, 3, 5, and 10 times the clinical dose of 13.2 mg pyrantel base/kg body weight administered daily for six consecutive days. Parameters evaluated included clinical signs, food and water consumption, body weights, physical examinations, clinical pathology (hematology, coagulation, serum chemistry, urinalyses, and fecal examinations), complete necropsy, organ weights, and histopathology. No adverse events or test ar...
Reinemeyer CR, Hutchens DE, Eckblad WP, Marchiondo AA, Shugart JI.Dose confirmation studies of the cestocidal activity of pyrantel pamoate paste were conducted at two sites in North America during 2001. Horses with naturally-acquired cestode infections were identified by detection of typical Anoplocephala spp. eggs in feces collected between 7 and 92 days prior to treatment. Twenty and 22 horses were enrolled at Site 1 (Urbana, IL) and Site 2 (Knoxville, TN), respectively. Candidate horses were acclimated to study conditions for 14 days, ranked by length of interval since coprologic confirmation, and allocated randomly to one of two treatment groups: (T1) py...
Marchiondo AA, White GW, Smith LL, Reinemeyer CR, Dascanio JJ, Johnson EG, Shugart JI.Clinical field trials were conducted at five geographical locations in the USA (Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Virginia and Idaho) to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pyrantel pamoate paste (19.13%, w/w, pyrantel base) administered at the recommended dosage of 13.2 mg pyrantel base/kg (6.0 mg pyrantel base/lb) body weight (b.w.) against tapeworm infections of Anoplocephala spp. in naturally infected horses. Horses at each study site were allocated by restricted randomization based on the cestode status (positive or negative) of pre-treatment fecal egg counts to complete sets of four animal...
Slocombe JO.Aims of this study with 43 equids naturally infected with Anoplocephala perfoliata in two dose titration trials were to document (i) the usefulness of a critical test with a 48 h treatment to necropsy period, (ii) efficacy of an oral paste of 0.5-2.0 mg praziquantel/kg body weight, and (iii) when after treatment would fecal egg counts provide best estimates of the tapeworm's prevalence in a herd. All feces passed by an equid after treatment and collected in successive 12 h batches were examined for tapeworms. At necropsy, tapeworms were identified as attached to the mucosa or unattached. Tapew...
Gasser RB, Williamson RM, Beveridge I.Anoplocephala perfoliata is the commonest tapeworm parasite of horses and is incriminated as a significant cause of clinical disease (e.g., ileocaecal intussusception, caeco-caecal intussusception and/or caecal perforation), particularly in horses chronically infected with large numbers of worms. The high prevalence (approximately 20-80%) of the parasite in some countries suggests an increased risk of clinical cases. In spite of research, there is still a paucity of information regarding the pathogenesis of the disease, the epidemiology of the parasite in different geographical regions and the...
Holm-Martin M, Levot GW, Dawson KL.A gel formulation containing moxidectin (20 g/kg) and praziquantel (125 g/kg) reduced the geometric mean faecal strongyle egg count in horses to below 100 eggs per gram of faeces (epg) for at least 12 weeks despite their being exposed continuously to reinfection from pasture grazed by treated and untreated horses. The geometric mean egg count of horses treated with a proprietary paste containing abamectin (3.7 g/kg) and praziquantel (46.2 g/kg) increased steadily from six weeks after the treatment, peaking at over 820 epg after 12 weeks. Relative to the efficacy of the abamectin/praziquantel t...
Meana A, Pato NF, Martín R, Mateos A, Pérez-García J, Luzón M.An epidemiological study on equine cestodosis was carried out in central Spain. A total of 372 digestive tracts from equids slaughtered in abattoirs located in central Spain were studied from November 2001 to May 2004. Anoplocephala perfoliata was detected in 24% of the animals and Anoplocephala magna in 18%. Individual tapeworm burden was from 1 to 491 tapeworms for A. perfoliata and from 1 to 64 tapeworms for A. magna. Low tapeworm burdens (less than 30 cestodes) predominated significantly (p<0.01) in all seasons for both species. Seasonal prevalence of infection by A. perfoliata was signifi...
Morgan ER, Hetzel N, Povah C, Coles GC.Parasites were extracted from the stomach and small intestine of 118 horses at slaughter. The most abundant species was the tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata. Maximum likelihood analysis was used to investigate the relationship between the number of worms and their total weight, and the ability of an antibody-based elisa to diagnose the level of infection. The total weight of tapeworms increased towards a maximum as the number of worms increased, suggesting a population density-dependent constraint on the weight. The number of A perfoliata present could be predicted approximately from the resu...
Kania SA, Reinemeyer CR.Anoplocephala perfoliata has a prevalence as high as 60% in some geographical areas and has been associated with increased risk for serious conditions in the horse including bowel irritation, ileal impaction, and spasmodic colic. Identification of infected animals based upon detection of eggs in feces is labor intensive and unreliable. This study involved the development of a test for A.perfoliata coproantigen using an antigen capture enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and correctly distinguished between infected and uninfected animals in a trial with a small sample size.
Marley SE, Hutchens DE, Reinemeyer CR, Holste JE, Paul AJ, Rehbein S.Modern anthelmintic use in horses has decreased the prevalence of the large strongyles, which has in turn shifted the focus of parasitologists to the pathogenic importance of the small strongyles, tapeworms, and other parasites. These studies show that a combination product containing ivermectin and praziquantel allowed efficacious treatment of horses for nematode, cestode, and bot infections. The use of this combination product may be of special benefit to horses that are mainly kept outdoors and on grazing pastures.
Matthews JB, Hodgkinson JE, Dowdall SM, Proudman CJ.Intestinal helminths are an important cause of equine disease. Of these parasites, the Cyathostominae are the commonest group that infect horses. These nematodes consist of a complex tribe of 51 species, although individual horses tend to harbour 10 or so common species, in addition to a few rarer species. The Cyathostominae can be extremely pathogenic, and high levels of infection result in clinical symptoms ranging from chronic weight loss to colic, diarrhoea and death. As part of their life cycle, immature cyathostomins penetrate the large intestinal wall, where they can enter a state of in...
Slocombe JO.Aims of this study with 13 equids naturally infected with Anoplocephala perfoliata were to document (i) a critical test with a period of 48 h from treatment to necropsy to assess the efficacy of an anthelmintic against the tapeworm, (ii) the efficacy of pyrantel pamoate oral paste at 13.2 mg pyrantel base/kg body weight, and (iii) the time after treatment when fecal egg counts would best estimate the tapeworm's prevalence in a herd. Feces passed in successive 12-h periods after treatment were examined for tapeworms. At necropsy, tapeworms in equids were identified as attached to the mucosa or ...
Rehbein S, Holste JE, Doucet MY, Fenger C, Paul AJ, Reinemeyer CR, Smith LL, Yoon S, Marley SE.The efficacy of an oral formulation of ivermectin plus praziquantel in the reduction of nematode and cestode egg counts in horses was assessed in 273 horses under field conditions at 15 sites in North America (n = 6) and Europe (n = 9). Horses were confirmed by fecal examination to have natural infections of strongyles (100%) and tapeworms (76%). Replicates of four horses were formed at each site, and in each replicate three animals received ivermectin (0.2 mg/kg body weight) plus praziquantel (1 mg/kg body weight) oral paste and one animal remained untreated or received vehicle paste. Fecal s...
Grubbs ST, Amodie D, Rulli D, Wulster-Radcliffe M, Reinemeyer C, Yazwinski T, Tucker C, Hutchens D, Smith L, Patterson D.The safety and efficacy of 2% moxidectin/12.5% praziquantel oral gel administered at a rate of 0.4 mg moxidectin and 2.5 mg praziquantel/kg was studied in client-owned horses under field use conditions. Four hundred horses (300 treated with moxidectin/praziquantel oral gel and 100 treated with vehicle) were enrolled, feces were collected, and eggs were counted. Investigators as well as horse owners were masked to treatment assignment. No adverse reactions to treatment were observed in any horses. Moxidectin/praziquantel gel reduced Anoplocephala spp by more than 99% and provided a significant ...
Barrett EJ, Farlam J, Proudman CJ.Two hundred and thirty-three horses were screened for the presence of roundworms by faecal egg counts (FECs) and for tapeworms by an ELISA specific for antibodies to the immunodominant 12 kDa and 13 kDa tapeworms antigen. The 62 horses were found to be infected with both parasites were treated with a combination of 0.2 mg/kg ivermectin and 1.5 mg/kg praziquantel. The treatment suppressed the median FEC of the horses to zero for 10 weeks and significantly reduced their anti-12/13 kDa antibody levels. The estimated risk of tapeworm-associated colic in these horses was halved by 12 weeks after th...
The Journal of parasitologyJanuary 23, 2003
Volume 88, Issue 6 1130-1134 doi: 10.1645/0022-3395(2002)088[1130:GHOPIL]2.0.CO;2
Chapman MR, French DD, Klei TR.A survey in Louisiana of gastrointestinal helminths recovered at necropsy from 117 ponies with minimal exposure to anthelmintics between 1989 and 2000 is compared with a survey conducted 20 yr earlier in the same region. An objective of this study was to determine whether species diversity has been affected by the advent and use of the macrocyclic lactone (ML) parasiticides and by the increased anthelmintic pressure on the helminth species infecting the general equine population. Twenty-six cyathostome species and 8 strongyle species were recovered. Two cyathostome species that were not found ...
Ryu SH, Bak UB, Kim JG, Yoon HJ, Seo HS, Kim JT, Park JY, Lee CW.A 7-year-old Thoroughbred horse was admitted to the Equine Hospital, Korea Racing Association with signs of colic. Based on the size of impactions, the clinical signs, the results of abdominal paracentesis and medical treatment, the prognosis was poor. The horse died 3 hours later following hopeless discharge. At necropsy, the caecum and large colon were fully filled with fecal contents and there was a rupture (10 cm in dia) in the latero- ventral caecum. The mucosa of the ileo-caecal and caeco- colic valves appeared to the hyperemic, edematous and ulcerous. There were many tapeworms in the af...
Little D, Blikslager AT.Deal impaction is prevalent in the south-eastern USA, where feeding of Coastal Bermuda hay has been implicated as a risk factor. Alternatively, infection with the tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata has been identified as a risk factor for ileal impaction in the UK. We hypothesised that feeding Coastal Bermuda hay and failure to administer routinely an anthelmintic with efficacy against tapeworms would place horses at risk of developing ileal impaction in the USA. Seventy-eight horses, with surgically confirmed ileal impaction and 100 horses admitted for colic that did not have an ileal impactio...
Roberts CT, Slone DE.Surgical management of caecal impactions has included several different procedures suggested over the years. Complete bypass of the caecum through an ileocolic or jejunocolic anastomosis has become common practice for first time caecal impaction management, especially when dysfunction is suspected. In our practice, however, caecal impactions have been managed surgically by typhlotomy alone and of the 10 cases (July 1988-June 1998), 9 underwent surgery for first time caecal impactions, received a typhlotomy, and had survived an average of 43 months at time of case review. At the time of surgery...
Barclay WP, Phillips TN, Foerner JJ.Intussusception associated with Anoplocephala perfoliata infection was found in 5 horses. The unusual types of intussusception and the presence of tapeworms at the leading edge of the intussuscipiens suggested tapeworms as the cause of the problem. Lesions attributable to tapeworm attachment on the mucosa were found to fit a mechanical model of intussusception. Treatment of two of the horses and some of their pasturemates with pyrantel pamoate caused elimination of intact tapeworms.
Pittaway CE, Lawson AL, Coles GC, Wilson AD.Infection of horses with Anoplocephala perfoliata induces a severe inflammatory reaction of the caecal mucosa around the site of parasite attachment adjacent to the ileocecal valve. Lesions show epithelial erosion or ulceration of the mucosa with infiltration by eosinophils, lymphocytes and mast cells leading to oedema, gross thickening and fibrosis of the caecal wall. Despite this evidence of an inflammatory reaction to A. perfoliata within the mucosa of the caecum there is little information about the nature of the local immune response to A. perfoliata. An ELISA which assays serum IgG(T) an...
Boswinkel M, Sloet van Oldruitenborgh-Oosterbaan MM.The importance of Anoplocephala perfoliata in horses with colic was studied in 139 horses referred for colic and 139 control horses with no signs of colic for at least three years. The serodiagnostic method of Proudman and Trees, which measures the level of A. perfoliata antibody, was used to detect A. perfoliata infection. Thirty-two horses were examined at necropsy, to determine whether the presence of A. perfoliata in the ileocaecal region was associated with the A. perfoliata antibody level. The mean A. perfoliata antibody level was significantly higher in horses with colic than in horses ...
Lawson AL, Pittaway CE, Sparrow RM, Balkwill EC, Coles GC, Tilley A, Wilson AD.Anoplocephala perfoliata is the commonest equine tapeworm, the adult parasites are attached in groups close to the ileocaecal valve causing marked inflammatory pathology. This work aimed to characterize the nature of the in vivo mucosal immune response to A perfoliata, and to investigate the role of A perfoliata excretory-secretory components in modulating in vitro immune responses. Real-time PCR detected elevation of IL13 and TGFβ transcription in early-stage A perfoliata infection. In late-stage infection, IL-13, IL4 and Ifn transcripts were reduced while the regulatory cytokines, TGFβ...
Slocombe JO.Aims of this study with 43 equids naturally infected with Anoplocephala perfoliata in two dose titration trials were to document (i) the usefulness of a critical test with a 48 h treatment to necropsy period, (ii) efficacy of an oral paste of 0.5-2.0 mg praziquantel/kg body weight, and (iii) when after treatment would fecal egg counts provide best estimates of the tapeworm's prevalence in a herd. All feces passed by an equid after treatment and collected in successive 12 h batches were examined for tapeworms. At necropsy, tapeworms were identified as attached to the mucosa or unattached. Tapew...
Engell-Sørensen K, Pall A, Damgaard C, Holmstrup M.We investigated the prevalence of equine tapeworms, Anoplocephala spp., in Danish horses during a seven-year period assessed by coprological analysis. The data material included >11,000 observations distributed over the period 2009-2015, and four major geographic regions in Denmark representing sandy soils and clayey moraine soils, respectively. This allowed us to test for possible differences between regions (or soil types) and seasons. For a sub-set of the data (about 1200 observations) age of horses was also known, and it was shown that prevalence was highest in the age group 1-5years and t...
Bohórquez A, Meana A, Pato NF, Luzón M.Current copro-diagnostic tests for Anoplocephala perfoliata show high variation in their sensitivity and given the morphological similarity of Anoplocephala spp. eggs, this could be related to the presence of Anoplocephala magna alone or co-existing with A. perfoliata. In the present study, coprology was significantly more sensitive (p<0.01) at detecting A. magna than A. perfoliata. This difference was independent of the parasite burden and was greater when testing was limited to horses with mature or gravid tapeworms. A. magna infection was strongly linked to young horses (≤ 2 years). The e...
Tomczuk K, Kostro K, Grzybek M, Szczepaniak K, Studzińska M, Demkowska-Kutrzepa M, Roczeń-Karczmarz M.For this study, 724 gastrointestinal tracts of slaughter horses were investigated to determine the prevalence, intensity of Anoplocephala perfoliata and tapeworm development stages over the second, third and fourth quarter of 2012 and the first quarter of 2013. For each positive horse, faecal samples were collected from the rectum or small colon for coproscopic examinations. The samples were analysed using dedicated modified sedimentation-flotation methods. In total, 52 horses were infected with A. perfoliata in the course of the study, with an overall prevalence of 7.2 %. The prevalence chang...
Holm-Martin M, Levot GW, Dawson KL.A gel formulation containing moxidectin (20 g/kg) and praziquantel (125 g/kg) reduced the geometric mean faecal strongyle egg count in horses to below 100 eggs per gram of faeces (epg) for at least 12 weeks despite their being exposed continuously to reinfection from pasture grazed by treated and untreated horses. The geometric mean egg count of horses treated with a proprietary paste containing abamectin (3.7 g/kg) and praziquantel (46.2 g/kg) increased steadily from six weeks after the treatment, peaking at over 820 epg after 12 weeks. Relative to the efficacy of the abamectin/praziquantel t...
Ihler CF, Rootwelt V, Heyeraas A, Dolvik NJ.The caecum and the adjacent 30 cm lengths of ileum and large colon of 201 horses from two different regions of Norway (Ostlandet and Trøndelag) were examined for the presence of Anoplocephala perfoliata. In all, 20% of the horses were infested with the cestode (27% in Ostlandet and 7% in Trøndelag). The mean number of worms in infected horses from the two regions was 18 and 6, respectively. Information was obtained on the age, sex, breed, type of pasture and anthelmintic treatment after the grazing season for 183 of the 20 horses. The degree of infestation with A. perfoliata was not influenc...
Lyons ET, Tolliver SC, Drudge JH, Stamper S, Swerczek TW, Granstrom DE.Critical tests (91) were done between 1977 and 1992 in Shetland ponies to evaluate drug susceptibility and population dynamics (present paper) of endoparasites. The test ponies, most less than 1 year old, were from a herd where older animals were treated every 8 weeks initially with cambendazole (CBZ) (1974-1978) and then with oxibendazole (OBZ) (1978-1992). Previous field test data (1974-1992) on older ponies in the breeding herd indicated the presence of benzimidazole (BZ) resistant small strongyles. Data on population dynamics from the present critical tests indicated that 28 species of sma...
Costa AJ, Barbosa OF, Moraes FR, Acuña AH, Rocha UF, Soares VE, Paullilo AC, Sanches A.A total of 24 male and female equines of mixed breed, 10-20 months of age and naturally infected with internal parasites was utilized in a controlled test to evaluate the efficacy of a moxidectin 2% gel formulation at the dosage of 0.4 mg moxidectin per kg of live weight and an ivermectin 1.87% commercial paste formulation at the dosage 0.2 mg ivermectin per kg applied orally. Animals were allocated into three groups of eight horses each based on pre-treatment eggs per gram (EPG) counts and treatments were randomized among the groups. One group was kept as untreated controls. One animal in the...
Hamza E, Torsteinsdottir S, Eydal M, Frey CF, Mirkovitch J, Brcic M, Wagner B, Wilson AD, Jungi TW, Marti E.Insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) is an IgE-mediated dermatitis of horses caused by bites of Culicoides spp. IBH does not occur in Iceland where Culicoides are absent. However, following importation into continental Europe where Culicoides are present, >or=50% of Icelandic horses (1st generation) develop IBH but
Lyons ET, Bolin DC, Bryant UK, Cassone LM, Jackson CB, Janes JG, Kennedy LA, Loynachan AT, Boll KR, Burkhardt AS, Langlois EL, Minnis SM, Welsh SC....Parasite infections are more quantifiable postmortem than antemortem in horses. Thus a study was carried out examining dead horses for specific parasite species. Most of the weanling and older horses submitted to the University of Kentucky Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (UKVDL) for postmortem examination between November 22, 2016 and March 23, 2017 were examined for certain species of internal parasites. The stomach and duodenum from 69 horses were examined for bots (Gasterophilus spp.). Combined data for both Thoroughbred and non-Thoroughbred (16 other than Thoroughbred breeds/mixed breeds)...
Bohórquez A, Meana A, Luzón M.The tapeworm responsible for equine colic, Anoplocephala perfoliata, is considered the most common intestinal tapeworm of horses worldwide. However, there is evidence that Anoplocephala magna has a similar prevalence in North America and Spain, and possibly in other countries, highlighting the need for diagnostic methods capable of distinguishing between these two species. Currently, immunodiagnosis of A. perfoliata is based on the identification of the 12/13 kDa excretory/secretory (E/S) A. perfoliata immunoreactive antigen, which while apparently specific, has never been tested in sera from ...
Sanada Y, Senba H, Mochizuki R, Arakaki H, Gotoh T, Fukumoto S, Nagahata H.To establish a reliable diagnostic measure for equine Anoplocephala perfoliata infection, the impact of deworming was examined in 12 Thoroughbreds to which bithionol (5-10 mg/kg body weight) was administered and feces were examined by the modified Wisconsin method using sucrose solution. One day after the administration, cestode eggs were detected in previously fecal egg-negative 3 horses and increased in the other 9 horses. The optimum time for post-deworming egg detection was examined in following horses: 17 mares were administered bithionol and 10 mares were used as controls. The fecal egg ...
Marley SE, Hutchens DE, Reinemeyer CR, Holste JE, Paul AJ, Rehbein S.Modern anthelmintic use in horses has decreased the prevalence of the large strongyles, which has in turn shifted the focus of parasitologists to the pathogenic importance of the small strongyles, tapeworms, and other parasites. These studies show that a combination product containing ivermectin and praziquantel allowed efficacious treatment of horses for nematode, cestode, and bot infections. The use of this combination product may be of special benefit to horses that are mainly kept outdoors and on grazing pastures.
Lyons ET, Bellaw JL, Dorton AR, Tolliver SC.Field tests were performed on Thoroughbred yearlings (n=143), evaluating efficacy of moxidectin (MOX) against ascarids and strongyles and the efficacy of an ivermectin (IVM)-praziquantel (PRAZ) combination against those nematodes and tapeworms on a farm in Central Kentucky. The study was started on March 1, 2016 and completed on August 23, 2016. Fecal samples were collected from yearlings every two weeks for counts of ascarid and strongyle eggs per gram of feces (EPGs) and for determining the presence of tapeworm eggs. MOX was given to 88 yearlings on March 1; 55 yearlings were nontreated cont...
Hreinsdóttir I, Hreinsdóttir A, Eydal M, Tysnes KR, Robertson LJ.In Iceland, there is at least 1 horse for every 5 human inhabitants, mostly kept on uncultivated rangelands. Although the Icelandic horse is considered robust compared with other breeds, it is nevertheless susceptible to disease. Few studies have investigated the prevalence of intestinal parasites in horses in Iceland. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of the tapeworm, Anoplocephala perfoliata, in horses in Iceland and to explore associations between intensity of infection and the severity of macroscopic pathological lesions in this population. In addition, the relation...
Romaniuk K, Reszka K, Lasota E.On the turn of July and August the prevalence and intensity of internal parasites of cattle, deer, and primitive Polish horses were estimated. It was determined, that all groups of animals were infected with parasites. The prevalence and intensity of infection were diversified and depended on the animal species, breed, age, and even sex. For instance, dairy cows of lowland black-and-white breed were six times stronger infected than Polish red breed, despite using the same pasture and the same cowshed. Nematodes and coccidia were present in calves using small, frequently wet, calf-runs and at h...
Rodríguez-Bertos A, Corchero J, Castaño M, Peña L, Luzón M, Gómez-Bautista M, Meana A.The pathological alterations caused by Anoplocephala perfoliata in the ileocaecal junction of 28 equids slaughtered in an abattoir in Madrid (Central Spain) are described. The lesions were scored in grades based on the intensity of the damage and were related to the tapeworm number observed. The first grade (grade I) of alterations consisted of a slight enteritis associated with focal erosions observed in 43% of parasitized animals with low parasitic burden (1-26 tapeworms). The second grade (grade II) was a focal pseudomembranous enteritis, present in the ileocaecal junctions of 36% infected ...
Gehlen H, Wulke N, Ertelt A, Nielsen MK, Morelli S, Traversa D, Merle R, Wilson D, Samson-Himmelstjerna GV.All around the world, intestinal helminths constitute one of the most prevalent life-long occurring infections and re-infections affecting all horse age groups. A range of parasite species among strongyles, ascarids, and tapeworms is known to have the potential to cause colic in horses. However, there is a lack of current scientific evidence on the actual relevance of helminth infection levels in the context of colic in horses kept during prevailing epidemiological conditions. Thus, a prospective case-control study on the occurrence of intestinal helminths in a total of 620 mainly adult equine...
Colglazier ML, Enzie FD, Kates KC.The comparative efficacy of four benzimidazoles against gastrointestinal parasites of ponies was evaluated by the critical test method. Mebendazole (8.8 mg/kg), cambendazole (20 mg/kg), fenbendazole (5 mg/kg), and albendazole (2.5 and 5 mg/kg) given in single oral doses were highly effective against adult large strongylids (Strongylus vulgaris, S. endentatus, S. equinus) and adult small strongylids (genera identified in order of frequency: Cylicostephanus, Cylicocyclus, Cyathostomum, Triodontophorus, Poteriostomum, Oesophagodontus, Cylicodontophorus, Gyalocephalus, and Craterostomum). Limited ...
Pavone S, Veronesi F, Piergili Fioretti D, Mandara MT.Gastrointestinal motility disorders represent a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in horses. Previously regarded as a non-pathogenic tapeworm, Anoplocephala perfoliata has been recently associated with equine colic. In this study, pathological changes related to A. perfoliata at the ileocecal junction were investigated in 31 slaughtered horses. Our results showed a significant relationship between parasitic burden and grading of histopathological lesions in both the mucosa and submucosa. Moreover, in infested horses, hypertrophy of the circular muscle layer was determined. Finally, ...
Morgan ER, Hetzel N, Povah C, Coles GC.Parasites were extracted from the stomach and small intestine of 118 horses at slaughter. The most abundant species was the tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata. Maximum likelihood analysis was used to investigate the relationship between the number of worms and their total weight, and the ability of an antibody-based elisa to diagnose the level of infection. The total weight of tapeworms increased towards a maximum as the number of worms increased, suggesting a population density-dependent constraint on the weight. The number of A perfoliata present could be predicted approximately from the resu...
Benton RE, Lyons ET.A total of 118 horses was examined at necropsy in central Kentucky for the tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata. The examination period was between 28 August and 21 December 1992. Prevalence was 64% for Thoroughbreds (n = 81 examined) and 54% for non-Thoroughbreds (n = 37 examined). The number of tapeworms per infected horse varied from one to 853. Data on infections are categorized by breed, sex (n = 38 males, 8 geldings, and 72 females), age (1-31 years), and month of necropsy of the horses.
