UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL AUTONOMA DE NICARAGUA LEON

UNAN – LEON

ESCUELA DE VETERINARIA

DEPARTAMENTO DE SANIDAD ANIMAL

Centro Veterinario de Diagnóstico e Investigación (CEVEDI)

Laboratorio de Histología y Patología Veterinaria

William Jirón T. MDV. DrC.

Marzo 2014

Acanthocephalan infections

The Acanthocephalan, thorny-headed, worms are classified in a separate

phylum (Acanthocephala) from the nematodos. The worms are characterized

by a spiny proboscis that attaches and burrows into the intestinal wall this way

lead to perforation, but usually the worms are well-tolerated.

They all have indirect life cycles, Macracanthorhynchus hirudinaceus, which

infects domestic swine, uses various beetles as intermediate hosts.

These parasites attach to the wall of the small intestine, often moving from site

to the site, where they penetrate the mucosa and muscularis and induce small

ulcers surrounded by neutrophils and granulation tissue. Rarely, the parasites

penetrate the wall, leading to peritonitis.