Park entrances: Hotspots for infectious canine roundworm eggs
An analysis of soil samples from twelve parks in Dublin, Ireland, revealed that park entrances were more contaminated with infectious roundworm eggs than any other tested park area. Jason Keegan of Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, and his colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases . Dogs and cats are commonly infected with parasitic roundworms of the genus Toxocara. Infected animals can shed roundworm eggs into the environment, and humans can become infected through accidental ingestion of the eggs. Many infected individuals show no symptoms, but some may develop mild or severe symptoms, such as an eye infection. Infection with Toxocara is one of the most widespread parasitic infections worldwide. While previous studies have shown that soils in public parks are often contaminated with Toxocara roundworm eggs, it has rarely been investigated whether specific areas within parks are more contaminated than others. To address this…
