title: Exposure to larva migrans syndromes in squares and public parks of cities in Chile.
abstract: Between November 2001 and December 2002, 600 dog fecal samples were collected in main squares and public parks of 13 cities in Chile, from the extreme north to the extreme south of the country. The samples were processed in the laboratory by centrifugal sedimentation and the Harada-Mori methods. T. canis eggs were found in 12 cities. Detection rates ranged from 1.9 to 12.5% with an average of 5.2%. Seven percent of the samples had eggs and 9.5% had rhabditoid and/or filariform larvae of Ancylostomatidae. Strongyloides stercoralis were not found. Squares and public parks in Chile pose a potential risk of exposure to visceral, ocular, and/or cutaneous larva migrans syndromes.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciencias Biomédicas, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile. mercado@med.uchile.cl
authors.forename: Rubén
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mercado
authors.forename: Marlene T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Ueta
authors.forename: Douglas
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Castillo
authors.forename: Victor
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Muñoz
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Schenone
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002677:Chile; D004285:Dogs; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology*; D006376:Helminths / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D007815:Larva Migrans / Q000469:parasitology; D010270:Parasite Egg Count; D011633:Public Facilities