Cysticercosis of cattle: causative agent and localization, symptoms and treatment

Cysticercosis of cattle is understood as a serious parasitic invasion, which occurs quite often. It is also called Finnose. The disease poses a real danger to animals. This is due to the fact that parasites can affect vital organs and cause disturbances in their work. To cope with the disease, it is necessary to contact the veterinarian in a timely manner.

What is Finnoz

Bovis cysticercosis is a lesion of the muscles of animals by bovine tapeworm, which are in the larval stage. As a result, the muscles of the tongue and heart suffer.If the animal has a weakened immune system, the cells of the liver, brain, and lungs are also damaged. In addition, there is a risk of damage to adipose tissue. Cysticercosis can be acute or chronic.

Causes and mechanisms of development

The causative agent of cysticercosis is the tapeworm larva. It is characterized by a number of distinctive features:

• the presence of an oval vesicle - it has a gray tint, is covered with microscopic villi and is filled with liquid;
• the presence of a head - its size does not exceed 2 millimeters;
• 4 strong suckers with rudimentary proboscises;
• ribbon body with many segments.

Most often, bovine tapeworm is localized in the body of an infected person. In this case, animals are considered intermediate carriers of helminths. To prevent mutual infection, it is recommended to strictly adhere to the rules of hygiene and engage in systematic deworming of contact people and animals.

The causative agents of cysticercosis have certain features in the life cycle:

• intermediate host is a pet;
• ultimate host - a human in which an adult can reach 10 meters and does not show itself;
• formed oncosphere transforms into a full-fledged larva after 6 months - sometimes it happens even earlier;
• maximum activity occurs after 7-10 months - characteristic signs may appear during this period;
• larvae die off after 10 months - this period can last six months.

Signs and symptoms of the problem

The insidiousness of cysticercosis in cattle is that with a mild degree of infection, the pathology is asymptomatic.

At the same time, the ingestion of a large number of pathogens into the body of animals provokes an acute form of cysticercosis.

It may take 2 weeks. At the same time, in the first 5-6 days, cysticercosis has a clear course, and then the characteristic symptoms disappear.

Usually cysticercosis in animals is accompanied by the following signs:

• sudden loss of appetite in an animal or complete refusal to feed;
• anxiety animals - they get too excited;
• increase in body temperature;
• severe dryness and blanching of the mucous membranes of the animal;
• frequent diarrhea;
• disturbances in the work of the animal's heart - they are evidenced by constant shortness of breath and frequent stops when moving to pasture;
• pain in muscle tissues;
• pain when feeling the mesh area and abomasum.

In an animal with cysticercosis, the temperature can rise to 39.8-41.7 degrees. At the same time, you don’t even need to measure it - the difference will be noticeable with an ordinary touch with your palm. Complications in the form of skin itching, blindness or ascites are extremely rare. The most dangerous symptom veterinarians call a decrease in temperature - 1-2 days after it there is a risk of death of the animal.

Diagnosis of disease

To make an accurate diagnosis of an animal, the following tests are used:

1. Systematic examinations and palpation of the oral cavity and tongue of animals. These procedures help detect surface worms.
2. Allergic subcutaneous diagnostics. To do this, tuberculin is injected into the neck area, the area under the tail or under the shoulder blade.Its amount is selected according to age. For young individuals, 0.15 milliliters of the substance is enough, adults need 0.2 milliliters. In an uninfected animal, edema will appear in the injection area after 24 hours, which will increase for another 2 days. When the reaction slows down, the injection is given again. The following reaction will be able to make an accurate diagnosis.
3. Research of serum using the reaction of indirect hemagglutination. At the same time, 5 milliliters of serum is recommended to be placed in a special tube and placed in a plate with red blood cells. If a precipitate appears, one can judge the presence of helminths in the body of the animal.
4. Latex agglutination method. At the same time, it is recommended to warm up the blood serum, add a latex suspension and a few other substances. After that, it is placed on a shutter-apparatus to mix. Then you can make a conclusion about the presence of helminths. If a mark appears with 2 or 4 pluses, this indicates that the animal is infected with parasites.

Treatment of cysticercosis in cattle

Treating cysticercosis is quite difficult. This is due to the specific effect of the pathogen. Only an experienced veterinarian can choose the right medicines. Strong antihistamines in this case will not work. They will lead to the mass death of parasites, but this can provoke inflammation and intoxication in the muscle fibers. Therefore, substances based on praziquantel are used to treat animals. These, in particular, include Droncit and Mebendazole. The dosage of the first drug should be selected by the doctor, taking into account the data of laboratory tests.

When using Mebendazole, 50 milligrams of the drug per 1 kilogram of animal body weight is usually prescribed.

Disease prevention

To avoid the development and wide spread of cysticercosis in animals, it is recommended to follow these rules:

1. Prohibit domestic slaughter of cattle and the sale of meat products without control by veterinary authorities.
2. Inform the public and livestock farmers about the risks of helminth infections.
3. Monitor the condition of farms and slaughter sites by veterinary and sanitary services.
4. Tag slaughter animals.
5. Dispose of carcasses of infected animals if they have more than 3 cysticerci when cutting muscle tissue.

Important to prevent cysticercosis are he alth standards:

• medical and veterinary services should cooperate closely;
• it is imperative to carry out preventive and therapeutic measures for animals and people;
• comply with hygienic practices on farms that help avoid helminth infestation, which include equipping bathrooms, examining employee feces, washing hands, systematic measures aimed at deworming;
• control wastewater by the state - they need to be filtered and disinfected.

To prevent the development of cysticercosis, close cooperation between medical and veterinary services is required. Of no small importance is the observance of simple hygiene rules when working with animals and in the garden. Also be sure to wash your hands during the preparation and consumption of meat.

Can a person get infected from sick animals

Human beings can contract cysticercosis from infected animals. This usually happens in the following ways:

1. Use Finnose meat. Most often, this situation occurs in nature, when cooking meat with blood, that is, dishes that cannot be sufficiently heat treated.
2. Neglect to wash hands that have been in contact with raw meat.
3. Drinking raw water from open water bodies containing helminth eggs.

A carrier of cysticercosis may not even be aware of the presence of parasites in the body for a long time. Cysticercosis is characterized by a different duration of the incubation period. In some cases, it lasts for several years. If a person does not wash their hands after working in the garden, worm eggs from the soil enter the mouth and provoke the development of cysticercosis.

The main symptoms of invasion include the following:

• persistent headaches;
• development of blindness;
• convulsions;
• epilepsy attacks;
• meningitis symptoms;
• appearance of dementia;
• hydrocephalus;
• speech disorders;
• mental abnormalities - they can manifest as delirium, depression, hallucinations, increased agitation;
• paresis;
• dizziness.

Sometimes there is cysticercosis of the skin. It is characterized by the appearance of towering formations. They are predominantly localized at the top of the sternum and on the inner surface of the shoulders. Bovine cysticercosis is a serious pathology that poses a danger not only to animals, but also to humans. To cope with the disease, you need to immediately take the animal to the veterinarian.

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