Analysis of the accuracy of different laboratory methods for the diagnosis of intestinal parasites from stray and domiciled cats (Felis catus domesticus) in Goiânia, Goiás, Brazil

Abstract Cats are carriers of zoonotic agents to humans, including intestinal parasites. The purpose of this study was to analyze the accuracy of different laboratory methods for the diagnosis of intestinal parasites. Fecal samples were processed by the Willis, Sheather, Faust and Hoffman-Janer-Pons-Lutz (HJPL) methods. Accuracy analysis was performed determining the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value and Kappa. A total of 149 fecal samples were collected, 65 from stray cats and 84 from domiciled cats. The prevalence of intestinal parasites in stray cats was 60% while in domiciled cats it was 17%. In the analysis of accuracy, the techniques that showed the greatest accuracy for Ancylostomids were Willis and Faust, for Cystoisospora spp. Sheather with Faust or HPJL, and Toxoplasma gondii/Hammondia hammondi the association between Willis and Faust. Therefore, for a reliable evaluation of the prevalence of intestinal parasites, at least two different techniques should be used in parasitological exams of feces.摘要 猫是包括肠道寄生虫在内的多种人畜共患病原体的宿主。本研究旨在分析不同实验室方法在肠道寄生虫诊断中的准确性。研究采用威利斯法（Willis）、谢弗法（Sheather）、福斯特法（Faust）以及霍夫曼-雅纳-庞斯-卢茨法（Hoffman-Janer-Pons-Lutz，简称HJPL法）对粪便样本进行处理。通过灵敏度、特异度、阳性预测值、阴性预测值及Kappa值开展准确性分析。本研究共收集149份粪便样本，其中流浪猫样本65份，家养猫样本84份。流浪猫肠道寄生虫感染率为60%，家养猫为17%。准确性分析结果显示：对于钩虫类（Ancylostomids），诊断准确性最优的方法为威利斯法与福斯特法；对于等孢球虫属（Cystoisospora spp.），最佳检测组合为谢弗法联合福斯特法或HJPL法；而针对刚地弓形虫/哈蒙德哈蒙德虫（Toxoplasma gondii/Hammondia hammondi），威利斯法联合福斯特法的诊断效果最佳。因此，若要对肠道寄生虫感染率进行可靠评估，粪便寄生虫学检查至少应采用两种不同的检测技术。