Occurrence of Giardia duodenalis in cats from Queretaro and the risk to public health

Giardia is a protozoan that affects humans, as well as a wide range of domestic species. It is distributed worldwide, and the highest frequency is seen in developing countries. Due to the potential for domestic cats to be carriers of this parasite and subsequently transmit the infection to humans, it is important to know the risk of transmission. For this reason, the objective of this study was to determine the frequency of this parasite in the cat population of the city of Santiago de Queretaro, Mexico, and identify the assemblages present to determine the role this host plays in public health, being this the first study of its type to be performed in the country. This was a cross sectional study during which 200 fecal samples were collected from cats of both sexes, varying ages and strata of origin. The samples were analyzed by microscopy following the flotation technique, having obtained a general frequency of 25 percent. Giardia cysts were found at higher frequency in pasty stools. The assemblages found were zoonotic, specifically, assemblage A, which suggests that the cat poses an important risk for the dissemination of the parasite to humans, making it an important public health problem.