Application of Ziehl Neelsen Staining Method for Taenia spp. Eggs Differentiation

BACKGROUND: Three of Taenia species, named Taenia saginata, T. solium and T. asiatica can be found in Indonesia, but only T. solium can lead to neurocysticercosis. The morphology of those 3 Taenia spp. egg is indistinguishable by standard parasitology procedure. We aimed to use Ziehl Neelsen staining for differentiation of eggs of T. saginata and T. solium. METHODS: As many as 40 containers of stool samples from the positive helminthiasis patients in Jakarta, Indonesia were collected during the year 2018. From each container, 10 slides prepared for staining with Kato-Katz technique as the preliminary examination. From those stool samples with positive taeniasis, we then once again made 10 slides/container for Ziehl Neelsen staining. RESULTS: The first 400 slides stained with Kato-Katz technique as preliminary test were all positive for Taenia spp. The second 400 slides, we got 244 slides that gave good results as we could distinguished between the eggs of T. saginata and T. solium, meanwhile the remainder 156 slides gave unconfirmed results. From those 244 slides, 154 slides showed T. saginata eggs with magenta colored and 90 slides showed T. solium eggs with blue/purple colored. The eggs of T. solium slightly smaller if compared to Taenia saginata and had round shape, meanwhile T. saginata eggs were oval in shape. CONCLUSION: Ziehl Neelsen staining method can be used as an alternative parasitological method to differentiate the eggs of T. saginata and T. solium.