Clinical and pathological aspects of first report of Tunga penetrans infestation on southern brown howler monkey (Alouatta guariba clamitans) in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Abstract

Tungiasis is a neglected neotropical disease related to the penetration of female individuals of Tunga spp. (Siphonaptera: Tungidae) into the host's skin, 1 wherein the flea develops an enlarged structure (neosome), keeping an opening through the skin at the final portion of the abdomen. This structure provides an opening for breathing, defecating, and expelling the eggs for females. 2 The condition

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“…Once the penetration is completed, T. Penetrans begins its feeding and the hypertrophic enlargement of the abdomen,11 called neosomy or new body,12,13 which is completed on day 6, when it begins to expel the eggs, which are ovoids and They measure around 600 x 320 μm11 that are "expelled one after another, like the cartridges of a machine gun connected together by a viscose substance";14 or one by one in Rachas [15][16][17][18].After the death of the flea (as part of its life cycle or surgical extraction), the lesion is covered by a thick black crust, leaving an epidermal scar,16 that microscopically corresponds to acantosis and parakeratotic hyperkeratosis, as well as areas Multifocals of moderate epidermal and dermal necrosis.17 This fact was the one that I call the attention of the researcher to plant the hypothesis that it was possible to reproduce that cicatrization process in cutaneous wounds [19].…”

Treatment of Animal Tungiasis: What’s New?

“…Wild animals can also be seriously affected by tungiasis, as indicated in reports of infections in anteaters [ 17 , 18 ] ( Figure 1 ), monkeys [ 19 ], and jaguars [ 20 ]. However, little is known about the importance and relationship of these wild species with human tungiasis, as well as the maintenance of the cycle of the flea T. penetrans , the epidemiological profile and the treatment of tungiasis in these wild species.…”

“…However, little is known about the importance and relationship of these wild species with human tungiasis, as well as the maintenance of the cycle of the flea T. penetrans , the epidemiological profile and the treatment of tungiasis in these wild species. This has given rise to the need for further studies of the disease in these species, because they can act as potential disseminators of these fleas, since most exotic species travel through large areas and are mainly prevalent in rural zones and indigenous communities that are potentially endemic areas for tungiasis [ 3 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ].…”

“…In Brazil, dogs are considered one of the main carriers of fleas in the environment, while in African countries, pigs play this role [ 8 , 12 ]. As mentioned above, after the maturation of the eggs in the lesions present in the parasitized hosts, the eggs are released into the environment, perpetuating the life cycle of fleas [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ]. Due to the close relationship of environmental sharing between these animal species and humans, people are more exposed to tungiasis in places where infected hosts are present.…”

“…Thus, control must be multifactorial and involve environmental and host control [ 15 ]. Manual flea extraction and treatment with topical antibiotic therapy to prevent complications is recommended for humans [ 3 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. However, this method does not apply in most cases of animal tungiasis, since most animals are severely parasitized [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ], as seen in Figure 2 .…”