Sparganosis due to Spirometra sp. (cestoda; Diphyllobothriidae) in captive meerkats (Suricata suricatta).

ABSTRACT: We report three cases of sparganosis due to plerocercoids of the tapeworm Spirometra sp. in captive meerkats (Suricata suricatta) from a zoo exhibit in the southeastern United States. Two meerkats were euthanized, one due to an uncontrollable seizure and the other due to trauma, and at necropsy cysts containing cestode larvae were observed. A third meerkat had a subcutaneous nodule surgically removed, which contained similar larvae. The third animal died years later, and had numerous cestode larvae in the pleural and peritoneal cavities. The larvae were morphologically identified as plerocercoids of diphyllobothriidean cestodes. On necropsy, multiple nodules, ranging in size from 2.5 to 3.0 cm, were observed in the subcutaneous tissue and muscles. Multifocally, separating ske

SUBMITTER: McHale B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7591330 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature