Prevalence of Ancylostomiasis in Pet Cats from Banyuwangi City,

East Java Province

Aditya Yudhana

, Ratih Novita Praja

, Fifi Anik Suroiyah

PSDKU Banyuwangi,

Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Indonesia

PSDKU Banyuwangi, Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Airlangga, Indonesia

Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universitas Airlangga,Wijaya Kusuma Street 113, Banyuwangi, Indonesia

Key

words: Ancylostomiasis, Banyuwangi, Cat, Prevalence.

Abstract: Ancylostomiasis is disease caused by hookworm parasite known as Ancylostoma spp. The number of cat

owners has increased year to year in Banyuwangi City. This condition may also increase the risk factor of

disease transmission related to Ancylostomiasis, which can be transmitted from cat to owner. The purpose

of this research is to determine the prevalence of Ancylostomiasis infection in pet cats. This research used

138 samples divided into 73 male pet cat feces and 65 female pet cat feces using the floatation method.

From 138 samples of examined pet cat feces, in 22 samples (15.9%) the egg of Ancylostoma spp was

positively found. Meanwhile, from 138 samples of examined pet cat feces, 9 samples from male cat (6.5%)

positively contained the egg of Ancylostoma spp and 13 samples from female cat (9.4%) positively

contained the egg of Ancylostoma spp. A control program needs to be applied for diseases caused by an

Ancylostoma spp. infection in cats that are beneficial to the animal and public health aspects. This study’s

results could also be used for further study, such as disease mapping, molecular epidemiology, and

development of new anthelmintic drugs against Ancylostomiasis.

1 INTRODUCTION

Ancylostomiasis is disease caused by a hookworm

parasite known as Ancylostoma spp. Among various

nematode parasites in cats, the hookworm belonging

to family ancylostomatidae is of great importance

due to their blood-sucking activities and chronic

pathogenesis. These parasites are further divided

into two subfamilies: ancylostominae and

necatorinae. The buccal capsule of these worms is

sub-globular, their lips and leaf crown are absent,

their oral opening is unarmed, or with teeth and

cutting plates (Bhatia et al., 2010). Ancylostoma spp.

is a blood-feeding parasitic intestinal nematode

which infects dogs, cats, and other mammals

throughout the temperature and tropical areas in the

world. In addition to the veterinary importance,

Ancylostoma spp can also cause zoonotic disease in

humans (Periago and Bethony, 2012). The larvae of

Ancylostoma caninum hatch from eggs and develop

into infective larvae via two molts. The infective

larvae then infect host animals such as dogs and

cats, migrate into the intestine, and develop into

adult worms following two more molts. If the

infective larvae invade humans, they can cause

cutaneous larvae migrans (CLM) or “creeping

eruptions,” which are hypersensitive reactions in

response to the migration of A. caninum larvae;

however, they cannot develop into adult worms just

by migrating under the skin (Yang et al., 2012).

The infection route of Ancylostoma spp. cannot

be separated from three factors, namely hosts,

agents, and the environment. Infection occurs if

there is an infective larvae of Ancylostoma spp. as a

source of infection and the availability of host that is

sensitive to a condition from environment that

causes contact between both. Cats that live in dirty

and humid areas have more risk of disease

transmission because a dirty environment is a

suitable place to the development of infective larvae

form of Ancylostoma spp. (Borthakur, 2011).

Management system in a cat is one of the factors

that play a role in the transmission of

ancylostomiasis. Pet and stray cats certainly have

different levels of infection risk. Stray cats are more

vulnerable to disease due to dirty environmental

conditions, food that is not always enough, and the

absence of good care from humans or veterinarians.

Yudhana, A., Praja, R. and Suroiyah, F.

Prevalence of Ancylostomiasis in Pet Cats from Banyuwangi City, East Java Province.

DOI: 10.5220/0007547205710574

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference Postgraduate School (ICPS 2018), pages 571-574

ISBN: 978-989-758-348-3

571

Meanwhile, pet cats have a better environmental

condition, regular feeding, and more care from the

owner, which can minimize risk of disease

transmission (Oktaviana et al., 2014). The number of

cat owners has increased from one year to the next

in Banyuwangi City. This condition may also

increase risk factor of disease transmission regarding

Ancylostomiasis, which can transmit from the cat to

the owner. It is important to conduct research in

prevalence aspect because there is no recording data

or current study about Ancylostomiasis from pet cats

in Banyuwangi City before. Besides,

Ancylostomiasis is transmissible to humans, and cats

are the pets most often found in public or in

communities.

2 MATERIAL AND METHODS

This research was an observational analytic research

with cross sectional design. In this study, 138 feces

samples were obtained from pet cats in their owners’

houses around Banyuwangi City. Cat feces were

obtained by asking directly to the cat owners. Cat

owners were given plastic pots for collecting

samples from their cats. The feces were taken as

fresh as possible and 5% formalin added to soak all

feces as preservatives into plastic pots and then

labels which display the time of taking and the

origin of cats which samples were taken from. The

samples collected were immediately examined in

Laboratory of Instrument Faculty of Veterinary

Medicine Airlangga University PSDKU

Banyuwangi.

The prevalence of Ancylostomiasis infection was

measured by examination of feces using a

concentration method named the flotation method.

The principle of this method is based on the specific

gravity (BJ) of the Ancylostoma spp. egg being

lighter than BJ of solution used, so the eggs can float

to the surface. The procedure of flotation method is

as follows: ± 2 grams of feces were taken, put into a

plastic glass, added with a little aquadest, and stirred

until becoming homogeneous. The solution was then

filtered. After that, it was poured into a centrifuge

tube until ¾ of the tube was filled up. The tube was

then rotated at 1500 rpm for 5 minutes. The

supernatant was discarded, then added with saturated

sucrose for ¾ of the tube volume and re-stirred until

becoming homogeneous. The tubes were rotated

with a speed of 1500 rpm for 5 minutes. Then, the

tube was put on the tube rack perpendicularly, added

with saturated sucrose solution through dropping

using pipette until the surface becomes convex and

left for 3 minutes. Glass cover was put on a convex

surface carefully, then put on a glass object and

examined under microscope with 100x

magnification.

The prevalence of Ancylostomiasis was

calculated using the formula: the number of infected

samples divided with total sample and multiplied

with 100%. The data obtained in this study were

presented descriptively and the proportion of

Ancylostomiasis infection prevalence between male

and female pet cats were divided based on the data.

3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The prevalence of Ancylostomiasis in pet cats in

Banyuwangi City was studied, and and the results

are presented in Table 1. A total of 138 pet cat fecal

samples were examined using floatation methods,

and it was found that 22 (15.9 %) samples positively

contained the egg of Ancylostoma spp. Meanwhile,

from 138 samples of examined pet cat feces, 9

samples from male cats (6.5%) positively contained

the egg of Ancylostoma spp, and 13 samples from

female cats (9.4%) positively contained the egg of

Ancylostoma spp.

Table 1: Prevalence of Ancylostomiasis from Pet Cats in

Banyuwangi City.

Pet Cat

Ancylostomi

asis

Infection

Total

Sam

ple

Pre

vale

nce

(%)

Posi

tive

Nega

tive

Sex

Male 9 64 73 6.5

Female 13 52 65 9.4

Total 22 116 138 15.9

Figure 1: Hookworm Egg Ancylostoma Spp. Found in

Positive Sample (Magnification 100x).

ICPS 2018 - 2nd International Conference Postgraduate School

572

Based on the examination of 138 samples of pet

cats in this study, the prevalence of Ancylostomiasis

infection was 15.9%. Specifically, male pet cats had

a prevalence of 6.5%. This data is lower if compared

to female pet cats because cats which had their

samples taken and had positive Ancylostomiasis

contamination were generally above one year old.

Cats above one year old can be considered as being

in adult phase, which means that they have stronger

body condition and immune system, thus having a

lower risk for infectious diseases. Adult male cats

also play a role as survivors in the environment and

become the top predator. Our results also suggests

that the prevalence of Ancylostomiasis in

Banyuwangi City in female cats is higher than in

male cats. This could happen because the ages of

female cats which had their samples taken from and

had positive Ancylostomiasis contamination were

under six months old. Cats under six months of age

have lower antibody than adult, thus having one of

the risk factors that make pet cats also more

susceptible to Ancylostomiasis infection.

The results from this study were have different

from the study conducted in Brazil by Lorenzini

(2007) which mentions that the prevalence of

Ancylostomiasis in the pet cats under treatment by

veterinarians was 6%. The study was conducted by

taking samples from feces of pet cats which were

regularly checked to the veterinarian. Different data

could also be found from a research conducted in

Australia by Holyoake (2008), which mentions that

the prevalence of Ancylostomiasis in pet cats was

only 0.2%. High results for gastrointestinal parasite

were found in Nigeria by Sowemimo (2012) with

prevalence reaching 57%. The study was conducted

in two urban areas in Nigeria. From each region, 100

samples were taken from pet cats raised in each

urban area, and the total samples obtained amounted

to 200. From the first region, the prevalence of

Ancylostomiasis obtained was 69%, while in the

other region it was 45%. A research conducted in

Bangkok, Thailand, by Jittapalapong et al. (2007)

mentions that the prevalence of Ancylostomiasis

was 9.9%, and that result showed lower prevalence

than previous study. Oktaviana et al. (2014)

conducted a research in Bali using 80 samples

divided into 40 stray cat feces and 40 pet cat feces.

From 40 samples of examined stray cat feces, 19

samples (47.5%) positively contained the egg of

Ancylostoma spp. Meanwhile, from 40 samples of

examined pet cat feces, 10 samples (25.0 %)

positively contained the egg of Ancylostoma spp.

These data become important because Bali is the

nearest place from Banyuwangi, which can increase

risk factor of Ancylostomiasis transmission through

pet cats.

Ancylostomiasis is mostly prevalent throughout

tropical, subtropical and temperate regions

(Mizgajska-Wiktor and Uga, 2006), where visceral

larva migrans is one of the most important parasitic

disease of man transmitted by carnivores (Dalimi

and Mobedi 1992; Fisher 2003). The most reliable

reason for the increased prevalence of

gastrointestinal helminthes in pets is the natural

predator–prey relationship, poor hygiene, and lack

of anthelmintics drug administration (Dryden, 2007).

The major pathogenesis of severe parasitic

infestations is mechanical damage to tissues due to

the migration of the larvae through the organism

(A.tubaeforme), anaemia, decrease of vitamins, and

interference with the immune system. The decline of

physical condition is due to release of such

substances as enzymes and toxins (Behnke 1991;

Loukas and Prociv 2001; Bowman et al. 2003). This

may be the reason for the presented cases of

constipation, anorexia, severe dehydration, and

epilepsy. Increased Hb and PCV and decreased total

protein and albumin may be due to severe parasitic

infestation. Hookworms cause anaemia because

blood loss is the greatest 10–15 days after onset of

the infection and A.tubaeforme may cause fatalities

in heavily infested kittens. Even though the cat is

treated with specific and along with supportive

therapy, it will be dead regardless, which may be

due to the delayed hospital visit by the owner and

thus leads to severity of the concomitant helminthic

infestation.

Abu-Madi et al. (2008) mentions that factors

such as geographical areas may affect the level of

prevalence. Other factors include climate,

consistency of cats staying in place and the roaming

range from the cat itself. In China, A. caninum was

reported twice in Sichuan province, southwest

China, with a prevalence of 25% and 51%,

respectively (Feng et al, 2011), while an overall

higher prevalence (95.1%) of A. caninum infections

in cats was detected in Guangzhou (southern China).

The predominant species of hookworms in cats was

A. caninum in China, while A. tubaeforme was

considered to be the predominant species in

Australia (Silva et al, 2006), which strongly supports

our suggestion that the prevalent species is related to

its geographical distribution. Cats could well be the

main host for Ancylostomiasis in Banyuwangi City.

The prevention of parasitic disease is possible

through health institution care for pets, including

regular anthelmintic treatments, preventing the

contamination of the environment from feces, and

Prevalence of Ancylostomiasis in Pet Cats from Banyuwangi City, East Java Province

573

promoting responsible pet ownership (Overgaauw,

1997).

4 CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence of Ancylostomiasis in pet cats in

Banyuwangi City was 15.9%. From 138 samples of

examined pet cat feces, 22 samples (15.9%)

positively contained the egg of Ancylostoma spp.

Meanwhile, from 138 samples of examined pet cat

feces, 9 samples from male cats (6.5%) positively

contained the egg of Ancylostoma spp, and 13

samples from female cat (9.4%) positively contained

the egg of Ancylostoma spp. A control program

needs to be applied for diseases caused by an

Ancylostoma spp. infection in cats, which are

beneficial to the animal and public health aspect. Pet

cats need to be given more attention for its health. In

addition, further research about epidemiology of

Ancylostomiasis in cats needs to be done.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors thank those who have assisted in this

research process at the Parasitology Laboratory

Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Airlangga

University PSDKU Banyuwangi, family and

colleagues who have been willing to help in the

process of research and writing of this article.

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