Potentially Fatal Parasite Can Be Transmitted To Humans - HighRiverOnline.com

---

Potentially Fatal Parasite Can Be Transmitted To Humans - HighRiverOnline.com Posted: 28 Jul 2019 10:00 PM PDT University of Calgary Professors are sounding alarm as a new tapeworm, potentially fatal to humans, has been found in Alberta. Dr. Claudia Klein, Associate Professor at the University of Calgary, was part of a team researching the parasite which was originally found in Alberta back in 2012, but has long since been a problem in areas of Asia and Europe. Dr. Klein says the parasite Echinococcus multilocularis is a type of Tapeworm, but it behaves differently in humans, causing organs to grow lesions over 5 to 10 years with little to no symptoms. "Most people when they hear the word Tapeworm, they think about this long parasite or worm that lives in your intestine and competes with you for nutrients." Klein says, not quite. "These are a different species of tapeworms, they're actually very small. You can barely see them with your naked eye, they're just about a millimeter in size and they have a natural life cycle in itself that does not naturally involve humans." According to Klein the way their life cycle works in the natural world starts with a carnivore. "It starts between Canids, so wolves, coyotes, foxes and dogs for example, those carnivores will harbour the tapeworm in their intestines. It won't affect them at all, it doesn't make them sick and they don't even notice they have the tapeworm." Klein says the tapeworm eggs will eventually get shed through the animals feces. Once a rodent comes along they pick up the eggs that were shed through the canid's feces and then become infested by the tapeworm. Rodents like mice, would develop tumor like lesions on their liver which causes death, then a carnivore would eat the rodent or carcass, becoming infected by the parasite." Researchers say the tapeworm shows up in three different strains, one from Europe, one from Asia, and one that's natural to North America. Klein collaborated with Ecologist and former U of C Professor Alessandro Massolo in 2013, where they sampled coyote feces collected from various city parks. Researchers found 70 to 80 per cent of samples contained eggs from the parasite. During initial research, they also came across a human host. The first human patient found to have been a host to Echinococcus multilocularis was diagnosed by the University of Alberta in 2013 and was what Dr. Klein calls a textbook case. "This was a picture perfect example, because this patient had undergone a kidney transplantation so she was taking immunosuppressant drugs and was living on an acreage outside of Edmonton where they grew their own vegetables in their garden." Klein says the rest of her family was tested upon this discovery and were all found to be fine, so she says likely this is because of their healthy immune systems. "Because she was on immunosuppressant drugs, we think it was very likely that she ingested some of these tapeworm eggs on the vegetables that they grow in their own garden." Klein says "It's hard to study in humans though because obviously we can't run any experiments where we expose humans to the tapeworm eggs and then see who becomes sick or not." Klein explains that most ordinary people won't become infected. "You're only really at a risk when you're in an immunosupressed environment. Other than that, you would need a really high exposure to be very constant,  that's why hunters and trappers would be at an increased risk." Eggs can be found on carnivores fur, and can be transferred to humans through touch or inhalation. In all of Canada there are 14 human cases, with the highest number found in Alberta. So where do our family pets come into play? Klein says the parasite can be transferred to dogs if they eat an infected rodent or feces. Though not wanting to spark fear, she say it's not often that dogs become infected unless they're fantastic 'mousers'. "The good news is that dogs are much less frequently infected by the tapeworm. We've looked at about 200 dog fecal samples and only one per cent of dogs were actually shedding eggs from the tapeworms in their feces." Humans who clean up after their dogs in the yard can be exposed, or by petting an infected dogs fur where eggs may have been shed, then touching their face. Klein says there are sure fire ways to protect yourself, and they include washing your hands after your clean up after your dog, and getting them dewormed, especially if they catch a lot of rodents. She says those at highest risk of infection remain those who deal with coyotes, wolves and foxes like hunters and trappers or veterinarians who see a high number of dogs each day. Echinococcus multilocularis does not affect felines, so house hold cats are safe from the parasite. Send us your news tips, story ideas and comments at [email protected]

You are subscribed to email updates from "How would I know if I had a tapeworm" - Google News. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States