Abstract

Khosrow Hazrati Tappe, Seyyed Javad Mousavi and Afshin Barazesh*

Hydatidosis is one of the most important health problems in Iran. Scrutinizing disease situation in local intermediate and final hosts to find appropriate controlling and preventing methods is of special importance. This study was performed to determine the prevalence and types of hydatid cysts in entrails of slaughtered livestock in Urmia city. In this descriptive-cross sectional study, arranged with Veterinary Office and Slaughterhouse of Urmia, all 4564 livestock slaughtered along the study were investigated of having hydatid cyst after butchering and separation of internal organs. The isolated innards of the slaughtered animals were examined of having hydatid cyst by trained experts administrated by researchers. If a cyst be traced by experts, all information about slaughtered livestock and contaminated organ was recorded on especial sheets and then sent to Research Laboratory of Parasitology Department, Medicine Faculty, to determine its fertility status. Of 4564 livestock studied 245 (5.4%) were infected by Echinococcus granolosus, among them, 2.7% were sheep, 8.6% were cattle, and 12.9% were water buffalos. The highest frequency of cysts was pulmonary type of hydatid cyst. About 38% of cysts were fertile and the other 62% were infertile. The fertility rates of hydatid cyst in sheep, was 37% for liver and 26% for lung; in water buffalo, it was 46% for liver and 44% for lung; and in cattle, it was 43% for liver and 39% for lung infection. The results of this study showed that the rampancy of contamination by hydatid cyst as well as its fertility rate was obviously high in slaughtered water buffalos. So, because of economic forfeitures of obliteration of these contaminated entrails and to prevent the transmission of the infection to human, it is extremely necessary to control propagation of the disease in this region.