Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii ‐like oocyst shedding in feral and owned cats in Damascus, Syria

BACKGROUND: The incidence of toxoplasmosis in humans in Syria indicates an increase in the number of infections with this disease. Cats are the only definitive host of Toxoplasma gondii and excrete environmentally resistant oocysts in their feces. OBJECTIVES: Estimate the prevalence of T. gondii‐like oocyst shedding in the cat population in Damascus, Syria. ANIMALS: One‐hundred domestic cats. METHODS: One‐hundred fecal samples from cats (68 feral cats and 32 owned cats) were collected in Damascus between October and December 2017 and examined for T. gondii‐like oocysts by direct microscopic examination using Sheather's sugar flotation procedure. RESULTS: Examination of the samples showed that 36% (36/100) of the cats were shedding T. gondii‐like oocysts. Sporulated or unsporulated oocysts morphologically consistent with T. gondii were detected in 38.2% (26/68) of the samples collected from feral cats and in 31.3% (10/32) of the samples collected from client‐owned cats. CONCLUSION: The clinical importance of Toxoplasmosis in humans lies in the transmission of Toxoplasma to the fetus especially in the first trimester, resulting in severe clinical symptoms in the infant and leading to spontaneous abortion, stillbirth or other serious health problems and severe sequelae (e.g., mental retardation, blindness, hearing, and neurological disorders). Our results showed higher prevalence in Syria than in Lebanon. High amounts of T. gondii‐like oocyst shedding were detected in both feral and client‐owned cats in Damascus, emphasizing the importance of further research to understand T. gondii infection in people and animals in this region.