Evaluation of strongyloidiasis in kennel dogs and keepers by parasitological and serological assays

Strongyloides stercoralis is an intestinal nematode with worldwide distribution, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions. Due to the low sensitivity of traditional parasitological methods, the detection of serum specific antibodies may serve as an alternative test for the diagnosis. The aims of the present study were to verify the occurrence of S. stercoralis and the presence of specific IgG antibodies to the parasite in kennel dogs and keepers, using parasitological and serological assays. A total of 181 dogs were examined from 7 breeding kennels in the city of Uberlandia, southeastern region of Brazil and distributed as follows: kennel A (n=41), kennel B (n=16), kennel C (n=11), kennel D (n=63), kennel E (n=11), kennel F (n=18) and kennel G (n=21). Fecal and serum samples from 11 keepers responsible for kennel cleaning and dog control were also collected in five of the seven kennels (two from kennel A, one from kennel B, four from kennel D, two from kennel E and two from kennel G). Overall, enteroparasites were detected by parasitological assays in 66, 36.5% (95% CI: 2.5-43.4%) of the 181 dogs tested. Only one (0.6%) dog was copropositive for S. stercoralis. Among the keepers only one fecal sample, 9.1% (95% CI: 8.6-9.4%) was positive for hookworm by the Lutz method. Serological assays showed that 44 (24.3%) of the 181 dogs were seropositive for S. stercoralis in at least one of the tests in the following kennels: 21 (11.6%) in kennel A; 1 (0.6%) in kennel B; 5 (2.7%) in kennel C; 6 (3.3%) in kennel D; 1 (0.6%) in kennel E; 9 (4.9%) in kennel F and 1 (0.6%) in kennel G. Among the keepers no S. stercoralis seropositive samples were identified using IFAT but 2 (18.2%) of the keepers from kennel D and 1 (9.1%) from kennel G were seropositive by ELISA. The present study demonstrated that the occurrence of S. stercoralis infection in kennel dogs and keepers is low in the city of Uberlandia and that serological assays can contribute to the diagnosis of canine as well as human strongyloidiasis.