Tapeworm infection is a significant risk factor for spasmodic colic and ileal impaction colic in the horse.
Abstract: The association between the equine intestinal tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata and specific types of intestinal disease was investigated by matched case-control study using coprological and serological diagnosis. We have previously shown that the host IgG(T) response to 12/13 kDa antigens of A. perfoliata correlates well with infection intensity, therefore this antibody response was used to investigate the risk of colic at different levels of parasite infection intensity. One hundred and three spasmodic colic cases with an equal number of controls matched for age, breed and gender, and 20 ileal impaction cases each with 2 similarly matched controls were obtained. Cases of spasmodic colic were much more likely (odds ratio = 8.0) to be associated with A. perfoliata infection detected coprologically than controls. Serological diagnosis revealed an increasing risk of spasmodic colic with increasing infection intensity. Calculation of an aetiological fraction suggests that 22% of spasmodic colic cases in this study were tapeworm associated. No significant association was found between colic and strongyle egg count. Conditional logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the relationship between colic and A. perfoliata infection intensity was not confounded by strongyle egg count and there was a linear relationship between infection intensity and the log-odds of spasmodic colic. For cases of ileal impaction, a strong association was found between colic and A. perfoliata as diagnosed by coprological means (odds ratio of 34.0). Serological diagnosis also revealed a strong association that increased with higher levels of infection intensity (odds ratio = 26.0). The aetiological fraction for the ileal impaction data suggests that 81% of the ileal impaction cases in this study were tapeworm associated. This study concludes that A. perfoliata is a significant risk factor for spasmodic colic and ileal impaction colic in the horse; and that the risk of spasmodic colic increases with infection intensity.
Publication Date: 1998-06-11 PubMed ID: 9622319DOI: 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1998.tb04487.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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The research demonstrates a strong correlation between an intestinal tapeworm infection, specifically Anoplocephala perfoliata, and two types of colic in horses, spasmodic and ileal impaction. The risk of these conditions increased with the intensity of the tapeworm infection.
Study Design and Methods
- The research investigated the relationship between the equine intestinal tapeworm, Anoplocephala perfoliata, and specific types of intestinal diseases using a matched case-control study design.
- Both coprological (feces-based) and serological (blood serum) diagnostic methods were used to confirm the presence and intensity of the tapeworm infection.
- Cases involved 103 horses with spasmodic colic and 20 horses with ileal impaction. For each case, a matching number of controls were included that were of the same breed, age, and gender but did not have colic.
Findings
- Spasmodic colic was found to be eight times more likely in horses with a Tapeworm (A. perfoliata) infection as indicated by a coprological diagnosis.
- The risk of spasmodic colic increased with the increasing intensity of the tapeworm infection as determined by a serological diagnosis.
- About 22% of spasmodic colic cases were associated with a tapeworm infection.
- There was no significant association found between colic and strongyle egg count, a measure often used for internal parasitic infections in horses. Thus, suggesting that the association between colic and tapeworm infections remained valid, unaffected by this specific confounding factor.
- For cases of ileal impaction, a condition where part of the horse’s small intestine (the ileum) becomes blocked, the study found a strong association with a tapeworm infection with an odds ratio of 34.0 on coprological diagnosis and 26.0 on serological diagnosis.
- The study suggests that 81% of the ileal impaction colic cases were associated with a tapeworm infection.
Conclusion
- The study concludes that the tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata is a significant risk factor for both spasmodic colic and ileal impaction colic in horses.
- Further, the study found that the risk of spasmodic colic increases with the intensity of the tapeworm infection.
Cite This Article
APA
Proudman CJ, French NP, Trees AJ.
(1998).
Tapeworm infection is a significant risk factor for spasmodic colic and ileal impaction colic in the horse.
Equine Vet J, 30(3), 194-199.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-3306.1998.tb04487.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Division of Parasite and Vector Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine/Faculty of Veterinary Science, Pembroke Place, UK.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Antibodies, Helminth / blood
- Case-Control Studies
- Cestoda / growth & development
- Cestoda / immunology
- Cestode Infections / complications
- Cestode Infections / parasitology
- Cestode Infections / veterinary
- Colic / parasitology
- Colic / veterinary
- Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel / veterinary
- Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / veterinary
- Feces / parasitology
- Female
- Horse Diseases / parasitology
- Horse Diseases / physiopathology
- Horses
- Ileal Diseases / parasitology
- Ileal Diseases / physiopathology
- Ileal Diseases / veterinary
- Immunoglobulin G / blood
- Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / complications
- Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / parasitology
- Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / veterinary
- Intestinal Obstruction / parasitology
- Intestinal Obstruction / physiopathology
- Intestinal Obstruction / veterinary
- Logistic Models
- Male
- Odds Ratio
- Parasite Egg Count / veterinary
- Risk Factors
- Spasm / veterinary
- Strongyle Infections, Equine / complications
- Strongyle Infections, Equine / parasitology
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