Angiostrongylus vasorum
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ANGIOSTRONGYLUS VASORUM
- Infects dogs and foxes.
- A typical metastrongyloid, with the adult worms living in the pulmonary arteries and the right side of the heart.
Life-Cycle
Adults (approximately 2cm), produce anticoagulants to reduce thrombus formation leading to coagulation disorders:
→ eggs laid into pulmonary arteries
→ trapped in lung capillaries
→ larvae (with merastrongyloid kinky tail) hatch out
→ alveoli (causing a small injury)
→ trachea
→ swallowed
→ passed in faeces
→ slug (intermediate host)
→ eaten by dog or fox (final hosts)
→ larvae migrate via mesenteric lymph nodes
→ blood stream
→ heart.
Epidemiology
Once restricted to Southern Ireland and Cornwall, this lungworm is spreading across the British Isles and is now endemic in the South-East. The fox may act as a reservoir of infection.