Poultry is easily exposed by parasites.

1. NO NAME ID.NO
1 MEGERSA AKASA 004292
2 MESFIN KASAHUN 004293
3 MESKEREM TOLLERA 004294
4 MULETA OLANI 004296
5 REMEDAN TEMAM 11088373
6 MOHAMMED AHMED 11088370
7 MOHAMMED JEMAL 11088371
SCHOOL OF VETERINARY MEDICINE
DEPARTMENT OF VETERINARY MEDICINE
POULTRY DISEASE GROUP ASSIGNMENT
Group : 5,DVM 4TH YEAR
Title : Major Endoparasites of poultry diseases

2. Poultry Parasitic Diseases
HELMINTH PARASITES

3. Heterakiasis
• Synonyms : Cecal worm.
• Is a nematode parasite that lives in the
cecum.
• Host :
chicken,turkeys,duck,goose,pheasant
and quail.
• Predilection site : lumen of the caeca.
• Etiology : Heterakis gallinarum.

4. Cont…
Source of contamination :
 Pollution by infected eggs.
- Eggs in fodders.
- Eggs in litter.
 Predisposing factors :
 Deep litter.
 Free scavanging system.
 Carrier birds.
 Mode of transmission :
 Ingestion of infective Heterakis eggs containing L3 or an
earthworm.
 Directly through contaminated water, feed, bedding, or soil.

6. Pathogenesis
Usually non-pathogenic.
Its pathogenic importance is a vector of a
protozoan Histomonas meleagridis.
Effects of the worm are slight.
Severe inflammation of the caeca.
Heavy infection in laying hens may
markedly reduce the egg production.

7. Clinical sign
 It has two forms :
1. Chronic : without symptoms,in adult
birds.
2. Acute : in chicken may shows :
 Weakening
 Anemia
 Stop growing

8. Gross Lesions
Caeca shows marked
inflammation and
thickening of walls.
Congestion,petechia
l
haemorrhages of
the
mucosa.
 Intussusception and
nodules in the cecal
wall.
 Hepatic granuloma
containing the

9. Histopathology
 Caecum
 Earlier changes ፡ Hyperaemia and heterophilic infiltration in caecal
wall.
 Later changes ፡ Infiltration with large numbers of lymphocytes and
macrophages
፡ Caecal core consisting sloughed epithelium, fibrin,
erythrocytes
and leukocytes along with trapped caecal ingesta.
 Liver
 Earlier changes ፡ Small clusters of heterophils, lymphocytes, and
monocytes near
portal vessels.
 Later changes ፡ Hepatocytes at the centre of lesions undergo necrosis
and
disintegration.

10. Figure : Portion of infected ceca of chicken
showing fusion of intestinal glands,
destruction of basement membrane and
lamina proparia.
Figure : Section of infected ceca of chicken
showing fused structure. Only mass of cells
are seen.

11. Figure : Portion of muscular layer of
infected ceca showing an artery which is
totally blocked.
Figure : Section of infected ceca of chicken
showing intestinal glands which are totally
fused and filled with inflammatory cells.
Distortion of muscular layer is obvious. Note
two arteries with obscure morphology

12. Cont…
 Diagnosis :
 Demonstration of eggs from feces.
 Identification of adult worms on necropsy.
 Differential diagnosis :
 Histomonas meleagridis : sulfur color diarrhea.
 Ascaridia galli : found in small intestine.
 Subulura species : found in the lumen of ceca,but there intermediate
host is
earwig, grasshopper,beetle,cockroach.
 Treatment :
 levamisole, tetramisole,phenothiazine
 fenbendazole

13. Control and Prevention
 Strict sanitation and good husbandary
practice.
 Routine removal of feces and litter.
 In game farms,rotation of lots and pens
should be
practiced.
 Separate different species of birds from
each
other.
 Disinfection.

14. Economic and Public Health
Importance
• Poor feed utilisation.
• Retarded growth.
• Reduce egg production.
• Increase disease susceptibility.
• Compromise immunological response to
vaccination.
• Transmit pathogenic agent such as
“Histomonas meleagridis” which cause high
morbidity and up to 20% mortality in chicken
flock.
• The disease is not contagious,because is not
a human parasite.

15. Gape worm disease
/Syngamiasis
• Synonyms : Gape worm,Red worm,
Forked worm.
• Is a parasitic nematode worm that infects the
trachea.
• Host : Chicken,turkeys,pheasant,geese,guinea
fowl,
wild birds.
• Intermediate host : Earthworm,slugs,snails.
• Reservoir : Wild birds.
• Predilection site : Trachea.
• Etiology : Syngamus trachea.

16. Cont…
 Predisposing factors :
 Semi-intensive system
 Temperature and relative humidity (larvae)
 Mode of transmission :
Direct : by ingestion of embryonated eggs or
infective larvae.
Indirect : by eating earthworms or other
invertebrates containing free or encysted
gapeworm larvae.

17.  Life cycle
L3 develop in the egg and infection can be
by ingestion of
hatched or unhatched L3 or
earthworm, slugs, snails or beetle
transport host

18. Pathogenesis of syngamus
 Young birds are most seriously affected with gape worm.
 Turkey poults and baby chicks are most susceptible to infection.
 Turkey poults usually develop gapeworm signs earlier and begin to die
sooner after infection than young chickens.
 Especially in young birds migration in the lungs cause pneumonia and
death.
 Worms in bronchi and trachea causes :
 Lymphoid nodules
 Hemorrhagic tracheitis and bronchitis with formation of
- large quantity of mucus.
- plugging the air passage.
- severe case causing asphyiation.

19. Clinical sign
Characteristic signs :
 “gapes” are those of dyspnea and asphyxia
occurring in
spasms on account accumulation of mucus in the
trachea.
 Gaping movement when worms clog and obstract
the
airways of bronchi and trachea.
 raising heads up,outstretch the neck,open the
beak and shake the head in attempt to dislodge
the worms, and gasp for air producing a hissing
noise.
 This “gaping” posture has given rise to the

20. Cont…
 Other signs :

Pneumonia,depression,panting,wheezing/hiss
ing.
Coughing,weakness,progressive emaciation.
Pale combs and wattles (anaemia).
Closed eyes and head drawn back against the
body.
 Young birds stop drinking and become
anorexic.

21. Gross lesion
 Worm in posterior trachea.
 Emaciation and pale carcass.
 Nodule infalmmation,
congestion and bloody
exudates in trachea.
 Trachea : Hyperemic and
contain blood tinged mucus
with forked red worms.
 Granulomatous tracheitis and
occasionally bronchitis.
Figure : Syngamus trachea in
the trachea of a ring
necked
pheasant.

22. Figure : Syngamus trachea; adult
parasites in the trachea. Males are 2-6
mm and females are 15-30mm long.
C
Figure : pictures taken at post mortem
showing.A: severely cachexic chicken carcass.
C: presence of red forked worms within the
trachea containing mucoid materials.

23. D
Figure : pictures taken at postmortem showing,B:congested,haemorrhagic, and
oedematous lungs with necrotic areas,D: presence of red forked worms within the
trachea containing mucoid materials.

24. Figure : Comparative breast muscle mass of noninfected
pheasants (left) and those with Syngamus trachea infections (right)

25. Histopathology
 Marked inflammatory
reactions with leucocytes
infiltrations into the
mucosa,occassionally
giant cells,and fibrosis around
nodular lesions.
 Epithelium showed necrotic
cilia while the submucosa had
numerous inflammatory
cellular infiltrates.
 Lungs :
 moderately congested and
fibirin exudates.
 ecchymotic hemorrhage and
oedematous.
Figure : Representative photomicrograph of chicken: A and B: Lungs showing severely
congested blood vessels (star), haemorrhages (arrow) and edema (arrow head),C and B:
Trachea showing epithelial necrosis (black arrow) and inflammatory cellular infiltrates
(asterisk) in the submucosa.

26. Cont…
 Diagnosis :
 Based on clinical sign “gaping”.
 Characteristic eggs in the feces.
 Finding worms in trachea.
 Differential diagnosis :
 Cyathostoma bronchialis ፡ a gape worm of geese and turkey.
- can cause bronchitis and pneumonia in geese,and tracheitis in
emus.
 Chronic respiratory disease : open mouth breathing,but no
wheezing.
 Infectious laryngotracheitis : bloody beak,cheesy
pseudomembraneous plugs
in the trachea.
 Infectious bronchitis : penguin like standing,false layer.

27. Treatment,Control and
Prevention
 Treatment
Anthelmintics : Thiabendazole,Ivermectin
Fenbendazole,Albendazle
 Control and Prevention :
 Use appropriate disinfectant to treat infected
pens.
 Keep pens dry.
 Turkeys should not be kept in the same pens
with
chickens and youngs should not reared with
adults.

28. Economic and Public Health
Importance
 Retarded growth.
 Reduce production and productivity.
 Loss of economy in poultry farms.
 The disease is not contagious,so it has no
public
importance.

29. Davaineosis
• Synonyms : Dwarf tapeworm,
Minute tapeworm
• It is a cestode parasite.
• Host : Domestic fowl,pigeons,turkey,geese,
other gallinaceous birds.
• Intermediate host : Slug and land snail
• Predilection site : Small intestine
(duodenum)
: Upper jejunum
• Etiology : Davainea proglottina
D.proglottina

30. Cont…
 Predisposing factors :
 Free ranging and
humid environment
 Mode of transmission :
 Ingestion of slugs (Limax,Arion,or
Agriolimax)
containing the cysticercoids.

32. Pathogenesis
Is highly pathogenic for young birds.
Free ranging poultry are more at risk if they have
free access to humid environments.
Can attach deeply into intestinal villi.
 Double armed scolex enables deep penetration of
duodenal mucosa.
 Causes haemorrhagic enteritis, retarded
growth,weakness,
and intestinal necrosis,which is fatal to young
birds.
Chronic infections leads to diminished egg
production.

33. Clinical sign
• Dull plumage,slow movement,marked
emaciation.
• Reduced weight gain / loss of weight.
• General debility,dyspnea, leg
paralysis,death.
• Retarded growth,weakness,diarrhea.
• Penetration of intestine leading to
peritonitis.
• Nervous disorders characteristics by partial
or incomplete paralysis of birds.

34. Gross lesion
 Nodules on the
mucosa.
 Intestinal
mucosa
appears
thickened
and,
 Haemorrhagic
enteritis,because
hold-fast organs
are heavily
Figure : The scolices of the worms burrow
deeply into the intestinal mucosa and give
rise to a marked enteritis.

35. Histopathology
 Thickened
mucosal
memeberane with
haemorrhages,fetid
mucus and
necrosis.
 Penetrate deeply
within the intestinal
villi of host and
leading to necrosis
and
haemorrhagic
Figure : Micrograph showing section of
intestine of an infected fowl with evident
degeneration of villi and smaller sized villi
called dwarf villi.

36. Cont…
Figure : - Heavy inflammatory cells around
the cestode. Necrosis of intestinal cells and
infiltration of eosinophils into the area.
Figure: (B) Necrosis of mucosa of
duodenum
around the parasite and ilium epithelial
necrosis.

37. Cont…
 Diagnosis :
 Accurate identification of parasite.
 Demonstration of proglottides in feces of birds.
 Necropsy : By examining mucosal scrappings or
: By opening the duodenum under water and observing the activity of
papillae like,minute tapeworms.
 Differential diagnosis :
 Neurotropic newcastle disease : due to presence of torticolis(similarity).
- Bilateral paralysis of neck,wing and leg tgether.
 Raillietinea species : broad headed tapeworm / formation of granuloma.
 Treatment :
 Anthelminthic :
- praziquantel ፡ the drug of choice.
- niclosamide,flubendazole,oxfendazole,mebendazole,febantel,butynorate.
 Antibiotics :
• suppression of any secondary bacterial infections.

38. Control and Prevention
 Control should be directed at the
intermediate host.
 Use molluscicides : Multigard or Dusk
(orion).
 Improvement of sanitary practices.
 Application of approved insecticides to the
soil/litter
in the premises like metaldehyde to destroy
slugs.
 Pens and range should be well drained.
 Separate birds according to species and age
groups

39. Economic and Public Health
Importance
• High mortality rate up to 40% in free
ranging layer flock.
• Decline egg production.
• Reduced weight gain.
• High economic loss.
• The disease is not contagious,because it is
not a human parasite.

40. E:EFFORT N:NEVER D:DIE