An investigation on the prevalence of Balantidium coli in traditional farms of the Darab city in Fars Province (Iran)

Balantidium coli is a ciliate intestinal protozoan with a wide host range in vertebrates، e. g. pigs، cattle، chimpanzees، and more rarely، dogs، cats، sheep، horses، and camels. This parasite causes clinical manifestation from asymptomatic to serious dysenteric forms. A total of 200 cattle were randomly selected from traditional farms of Darab city for a period of six month from January 2012 to July 2013. Feacal samples were prepared directly from rectum of these cattle. These samples were transferred to laboratory and were examined for the detection of Balantidium coli after concentration with formal-ether method and trichorme staining. The prevalence of Balantidium coli in the studied samples was 41. 5%. The infection rate of Balantidim coli among female and male cattle was 57 (43. 2%) and 26 (38. 2%) respectively. The highest and lowest prevalence of Balantidium coli was in more than 3 years old cattle (47. 6%) and 1 to 3 years old cattle (25. 6%) respectively. There was statistical significant difference between prevalence and age groups (P)