The medical relevance of tapeworm infection in Indonesian Bronzeback snakes (): A neglected zoonotic disease.

AIM

parasites cause sparganosis, a zoonotic disease, especially in reptiles and humans. This study aimed to report on the prevalence and effects of parasites infection on public health and provide a scientific foundation for its prevention.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 378 living Indonesian wild-caught and captive-bred Bronzeback snakes () were selected. The snakes were euthanized using ethyl ether anesthesia before checking for parasites. The numbers of located in the muscle tissue, subcutaneous tissue, and coelom (including the viscera) were each counted to investigate the distribution of inside the snake body cavity.

RESULTS

The total prevalence in the sample was 50.85%. The prevalence values in wild-caught and captive-bred snakes were 70.7% and 48.7%, respectively. More than half (56.6%) of the parasites were located in the muscular tissue, while 29.5% were in the subcutaneous tissue and 13.8% were in the coelomic cavity.

CONCLUSION

Wild-caught Indonesian Bronzeback snakes, which are sold as food in markets, and captive-bred snakes, which are collected as exotic pets in Indonesia, have similar opportunities to transmit the parasite and cause global health problems due to their high prevalence.