Evaluation of Different Parasitological Techniques for Diagnosing Intestinal Parasites in Dogs

Abstract

Intestinal nematodes are among the most common parasites of dogs, being Toxocara spp. and An-cylostoma spp. threats to public health due to their zoonotic potential. In this study, three parasi-tological diagnostic techniques for detecting the eggs/oocysts of canine intestinal parasites were evaluated. Fecal samples (n = 285) were collected from the environment (i.e. public streets, sq-uares and homes) in Garanhuns, Pernambuco, Brazil. Samples were analyzed using the Willis-Mollay simple flotation technique, spontaneous sedimentation (Hoffman, Pons and Janer) and mod-ified centrifugal flotation. Among the samples analyzed, 56.49% (161/285) showed eggs and/or oocysts of intestinal parasites. In particular, 44.21% (126/285) were detected by the Willis tech-nique, 45.14% (121/268) by centrifugal flotation and 31.57% (90/285) by the Hoffmann tech-nique. The kappa index indicated good concordance between the centrifugal flotation and Willis techniques (κ = 0.625), whereas fair concordance was observed between Hoffmann and Willis (κ = 0.480), and between Hoffman and centrifugal flotation (κ = 0.433). In conclusion, the centrifugal flotation technique showed high sensitivity towards detecting Ancylostoma spp. and Toxocara spp. (the most common parasites in this study) and could be used in association with the Willis tech-nique to obtain safe diagnoses within routine laboratory analysis.