Prevalence, Risk Factors and Diagnosis of Helminths in Thoroughbred Horses Kept at Training Centers in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Abstract: The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of helminths in Thoroughbred horses in Rio de Janeiro; make correlations with risk factors for these infections; and compare the efficiency of three floatation solutions applied in the quantitative Mini-FLOTAC technique. Fecal samples from 520 horses were collected from six training centers between 2019 and 2021. These were subjected to the Mini-FLOTAC technique using three solutions: NaCl (density = 1.200 g/mL), ZnSO4 (1.350 g/mL) and ZnSO4 (1.200 g/mL); and also to qualitative techniques. Information on the horses' sex and age of horses was retrieved from the studbook; data on management from a questionnaire. The overall prevalence of intestinal parasites was 71.9%, with significant differences between training centers (P ≤ .05). On farm C, 87.7% of the samples presented strongylids and 38.7% had Parascaris spp., with the highest egg counts per gram of feces (EPG), of 358.33 and 40.41 respectively. Horses less than 3 years of age were about eight times more likely to be parasitized by strongylids and eleven times more likely to have EPG ≥500. The NaCl solution used in Mini-FLOTAC enabled recovery of the greatest number of samples with high EPG and reached the highest sensitivity values in the diagnosis when compared to the other solutions. Moreover, in the diagnoses, the levels of agreement between the results from the solutions used in Mini-FLOTAC were substantial. However, in estimating the EPG, full agreement between the results from the solutions used in Mini-FLOTAC was not obtained.
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Publication Date: 2023-05-01 PubMed ID: 37448261DOI: 10.1016/j.jevs.2023.104536Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
Summary
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The research study investigated the prevalence and risk factors of helminths (intestinal worms) in thoroughbred horses in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and evaluates the efficacy of different floatation solutions used in the Mini-FLOTAC diagnostic technique.
Methodology
- Fecal samples from 520 horses were collected across six training centers between the years 2019 and 2021.
- The samples were subjected to the Mini-FLOTAC technique using three different solutions: Sodium Chloride (NaCl with density = 1.200 g/mL), Zinc Sulfate (ZnSO4, density = 1.350 g/mL), and another different concentration of Zinc Sulfate (1.200 g/mL).
- The horses’ sex and age information was retrieved from the studbook, while the management data was acquired from a questionnaire.
Research Findings
- The overall prevalence of intestinal parasites was found to be 71.9%, with significant differences observed between different training centers.
- The highest prevalence of helminths was noticed in farm C where 87.7% of samples showed strongylids infestations (a type of helminth) and 38.7% presented Parascaris spp. (a genus of parasitic roundworms).
- Horses less than 3 years of age were approximately eight times more likely to be infested by strongylids and eleven times more likely to display higher egg counts per gram of horse feces (EPG ≥500).
Efficacy of Mini-FLOTAC Technique
- The highest efficiency in diagnosing the eggs was achieved by the NaCl solution in the Mini-FLOTAC technique, as it allowed the recovery of the greatest number of samples with high EPG and reached the highest Sensitivity values in the diagnosis.
- While there was substantial agreement between the solutions applied in the diagnoses for Mini-FLOTAC, perfect concordance between the outcomes was not obtained in estimating the egg counts per gram of feces.
Cite This Article
APA
Martins AV, Corrêa LL, Ribeiro MS, Lobão LF, Dib LV, Palmer JPS, de Moura LC, Knackfuss FB, Uchôa CMA, Molento MB, Barbosa ADS.
(2023).
Prevalence, Risk Factors and Diagnosis of Helminths in Thoroughbred Horses Kept at Training Centers in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
J Equine Vet Sci, 127, 104536.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jevs.2023.104536 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Laboratório de Parasitologia e Doenças Parasitárias, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Centro Universitário Serra dos Órgãos, Teresópolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Laboratório de Protozoologia, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Parasitologia e Doenças Parasitárias, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Centro Universitário Serra dos Órgãos, Teresópolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Zootecnia e Estatística, Escola de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Grande Rio, Duque de Caxias, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Parasitologia Clínica Veterinária, Departamento de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade Federal do Paraná. Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
- Laboratório de Bioagentes Ambientais, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Instituto Biomédico, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Laboratório de Protozoologia, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Electronic address: alynnedsb@gmail.com.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Horses
- Brazil / epidemiology
- Prevalence
- Sodium Chloride
- Parasite Egg Count / methods
- Parasite Egg Count / veterinary
- Helminths
- Risk Factors
Conflict of Interest Statement
Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Citations
This article has been cited 3 times.- Phetkarl T, Fungwithaya P, Lewchalermvong K, Sontigun N. Prevalence of gastrointestinal and blood parasites in horses of Nakhon Si Thammarat province, Thailand. Vet World 2024 Nov;17(11):2460-2468.
- Dib LV, Barbosa A, da Silva B, Pissinatti A, Moreira S, Tavares MC, Teixeira R, da Costa AL, Muniz JA, Junglos A, Hirano ZM, Amendoeira MR. Gastrointestinal Parasites Affecting Non-Human Primates That Are Kept Ex Situ and Their Handlers in Different Brazilian Institutions: Diagnosis and Analysis of Risk Factors. Pathogens 2023 Nov 30;12(12).
- Simões J, Sales Luís JP, Madeira de Carvalho L, Tilley P. Severely Asthmatic Horses Residing in a Mediterranean Climate Shed a Significantly Lower Number of Parasite Eggs Compared to Healthy Farm Mates. Animals (Basel) 2023 Sep 15;13(18).
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