''Taenia taeniaeformis'' is a parasitic

tapeworm Eucestoda, commonly referred to as tapeworms, is the larger of the two subclasses of flatworms in the class Cestoda (the other subclass is Cestodaria). Larvae have six posterior hooks on the scolex (head), in contrast to the ten-hooked Cesto ...

, with cats as the primary

definitive host In biology and medicine, a host is a larger organism that harbours a smaller organism; whether a parasitic, a mutualistic, or a commensalist ''guest'' ( symbiont). The guest is typically provided with nourishment and shelter. Examples include ...

s. Sometime dogs can also be the definitive host. The

intermediate host In biology and medicine, a host is a larger organism that harbours a smaller organism; whether a parasitic, a mutualistic, or a commensalist ''guest'' ( symbiont). The guest is typically provided with nourishment and shelter. Examples include ...

s are rodents and less frequently lagomorphs (rabbits). The definitive host must ingest the liver of the intermediate host in order to acquire infection. The worm tends to be white, thick bodied, and around 15 to 60 cm in length. This species of tape worm is much less frequently encountered than '' Dipylidium caninum'', which has fleas as its intermediate host rather than rodents but exhibits most of the same physical characteristics and is treated with the same medications (i.e.,

antihelminthic Anthelmintics or antihelminthics are a group of antiparasitic drugs that expel parasitic worms (helminths) and other internal parasites from the body by either stunning or killing them and without causing significant damage to the host. They may ...

s).

Lifecycle

The eggs of the tapeworm are shed by the definitive host in the feces, and these are then consumed by rodents where they pass through several stages of development and cause various forms of damage, eventually coming to reside primarily in the liver and abdominal cavity where each

scolex Cestoda is a class of parasitic worms in the flatworm phylum (Platyhelminthes). Most of the species—and the best-known—are those in the subclass Eucestoda; they are ribbon-like worms as adults, known as tapeworms. Their bodies consist of m ...

will create a fluid-filled

cyst A cyst is a closed sac, having a distinct envelope and division compared with the nearby tissue. Hence, it is a cluster of cells that have grouped together to form a sac (like the manner in which water molecules group together to form a bubble) ...

. Here the parasite will wait for up to two months for the rodent to be eaten by a suitable definitive host. The definitive host must ingest the strobilocercus stage of the tapeworm in order to acquire the parasite and complete the lifecycle. The strobilocercus is a larval stage that has a terminal bladder and a rather long segmented body that is in crowned with the

that looks very similar to that found on the adult form. Once a cat ingests the strobilocercus, the posterior portion of the larva is in digested away and then the anterior portion begins to develop. Infection in the cat will develop and become obvious between 30 and 80 days after the cat has ingested the infected liver of a prey animal. Once the infection is established, it can last for between seven months and three years. A cat will produce between three and four motile segments per day either excreted in the feces or through direct migration, each containing between 500 and 12,000 eggs. Spontaneous worm destrobilization (the shedding of the entire portion of the body located behind the scolex and containing all of the strobila) may occur without any change in actual infection. Once shed, the proglotids are often very active and are capable of crawling considerable distances as they shed their eggs. Actual eggs are spheroid and are between 31 and 36 micrometers in diameter. Superinfection in cats is possible if they are fed young tapeworms in the presence of established mature ones.

Diagnosis

Infection in cats is in diagnosed by finding the distinctive segments in the feces or by finding the eggs upon

fecal flotation Feces ( or faeces), known colloquially and in slang as poo and poop, are the solid or semi-solid remains of food that was not digested in the small intestine, and has been broken down by bacteria in the large intestine. Feces contain a relati ...

. You may also see small segments lying around where the animal has been that have exited through the anus. To identify a segment, it can be crushed on a glass slide and examined for eggs.

Treatment

Praziquantel Praziquantel (PZQ), sold under the brandname Biltricide among others, is a medication used to treat a number of types of parasitic worm infections in mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fish. In humans specifically, it is used to treat sc ...

(5 mg/kg body weight) and epsiprantel have both been shown to be efficacious in the treatment of taeniataeniaeformis in cats. Similarly, febantel and

fenbendazole Fenbendazole is a broad spectrum benzimidazole anthelmintic used against gastrointestinal parasites including: giardia, roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, the tapeworm genus '' Taenia'' (but not effective against '' Dipylidium caninum'', a comm ...

are approved for the treatment of this parasite in most of the world.

Mebendazole Mebendazole (MBZ), sold under the brand name Vermox among others, is a medication used to treat a number of parasitic worm infestations. This includes ascariasis, pinworm infection, hookworm infections, guinea worm infections, hydatid disea ...

and nitroscanate are also products that have efficacy against taeniataeniaeformis in cats.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q632792 Cestoda Animals described in 1786