Infection of Man with Trichuris Vulpis, the Whipworm of Dogs

Abstract

A gravid female Trichuris was found in histopathologic sections of an appendix in a post-mortem examination, and a posterior extremity of a male Trichuris was recovered from the unsectioned portion of the same appendix. These parasites were identified as T. vulpis, the whipworm of dogs.

Morphological diversity of Trichuris spp. eggs observed during an anthelminthic drug trial in Yunnan, China, and relative performance of parasitologic diagnostic tools

“…Larger-than-standard T. trichiura eggs have been reported to co-exist with normal-sized eggs, sometimes in the same worm (Yoshikawa et al, 1989). Others dispute the common occurrence of oversized T. trichiura eggs (Kenney and Yermakov, 1980). It has also been reported that T. trichiura eggs of abnormal size and shape can be found following the administration of anthelminthic drugs (Wagner and Chavarria, 1974).…”

Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites of stray dogs impounded by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), Durban and Coast, South Africa : short communication

“…Surprisingly, the parasite was absent in the previous studies in South Africa 16,17 but reported in stray dogs in neighbouring Zimbabwe 1 8 . Human infections by T. vulpis have been reported 9,12,25 and have been attributed to humans being in continuous contact with environments contaminated by infected dogs.…”

Are we paying too much attention to cardio-pulmonary nematodes and neglecting old-fashioned worms like Trichuris vulpis?

“…Later on, another presumed diagnosis was made on the basis of large eggs and on the morphology of nematodes (i.e. a gravid female and a partial adult male) histopathologically found in an appendix during a necropsy of a cancer patient in the USA [19]. The male nematode found in the appendix lacked caudal papillae and had a long cloaca, considered key features in distinguishing T. vulpis from other species of the genus [19,20].…”

“…a gravid female and a partial adult male) histopathologically found in an appendix during a necropsy of a cancer patient in the USA [19]. The male nematode found in the appendix lacked caudal papillae and had a long cloaca, considered key features in distinguishing T. vulpis from other species of the genus [19,20]. However, no examination of female characters was performed and, moreover, the authors stated that no "further examination of the posterior male portion" was made, even though they identified the parasites to be T. vulpis [19].…”