Public Service Announcement : Never lick your cat's butt.
Adult worms of the Toxocara family often live in the small intestine of dogs and cats. They range from 4-12 cm in length. Almost all puppies are infected at or soon after birth. During the summer, Toxocara infective eggs are shed. They survive for years in the environment, and humans typically ingest the eggs orally by eating with contaminated hands. Once introduced into the human intestine, the eggs develop into larvae. The larval form is less than 0.5 mm in length and 0.02 mm wide. The larvae penetrate the bowel wall and migrate through blood vessels to reach the liver, muscles, and lungs. Sometimes the parasite penetrates into the eye and brain.
Disease severity is affected by the number of eggs ingested, duration of infection, tissue location of larvae, and the immune response to the infection.
[edit] Features
* Weakness
* Pruritus (Itching)
* Rash
* Difficulty breathing
* Abdominal pain / Hepatosplenomegaly
* Hyper-eosinophilia
* Increased total serum Immunoglobulin E (IgE) level
* Elevated antibody titers to T. canis