Prevalence of Echinococcus infections in canines and risk factors of human echinococcosis in Guoluo Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province

doi:10.12140/j.issn.1000-7423.2026.03.006

Abstract

Abstract:

Objective To investigate the prevalence of Echinococcus infections in canines and the risk factors and behaviors for human echinococcosis in Guoluo Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, so as to provide insights into formulation of precise echinococcosis control in this region. Methods Pastoral dog-raising households were randomly sampled from 11 townships of Banma County, Dari County and Jiuzhi County in Guoluo for surveying on risk factors for domestic dog infection using a random sampling method in 2025, and fresh or apparently intact fecal samples were collected from domestic dogs and wild canines. A multiplex quantitative Real-time PCR (qPCR) assay was employed to detect Echinococcus infection status in fecal samples. Based on the previous surveys, the risk factors and behaviors of human echinococcosis were examined in Bama County and Dari County, Guoluo in 2025. Univariate analysis was performed with a history of human echinococcosis as an dependent variable, and a logistic regression model was created to identify independent factors affecting the development of human echinococcosis. All statistical analyses were performed with the statistical software SPSS 25.0, and chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test was used for comparison of constituent ratios. Results A total of 945 canine fecal samples were collected, including 696 fecal samples from domestic dogs and 249 fecal samples from wild canines. The overall prevalence of Echinococcus was 1.59% (15/945) in dog feces, and the detection of Echinococcus was higher in fecal samples from domestic dogs than those from wild dogs [0.43% (3/696) vs. 4.82% (12/249); χ² = 19.885, P < 0.01]. A total of 459 questionnaires on risk factors for Echinococcus infection in domestic dogs were collected. The analysis showed that the fecal positivity rate in domestic dogs differed significantly among different tying methods(χ² = 8.400, P < 0.05), while no statistical significance was found for the other risk factors (P > 0.05). A total of 400 questionnaires pertaining to human echinococcosis behaviors, and 346 valid questionnaires were recovered, with a recovery rate of 86.50%. The awareness and qualification rates of echinococcosis control knowledge were 86.12% (1 788/2 076) and 86.99% (301/346). A significant difference was found in the qualification rate of human echinococcosis knowledge between Banma County (96.95%, 159/164) and Dari County (78.02%, 142/182) (χ² = 25.672, P < 0.05), and significant differences were detected in the qualification rate among individuals with dog breeding at home, presence of stray dogs or wild canines near the residence, behaviors of lying on grass or biting grass, and household disposal of raw bovine and goat viscera (χ² = 18.155, 5.115, 3.958, 32.647; all P < 0.05). The univariate analysis results showed that there was a significant difference in the prevalence of human echinococcosis between Banma County and Dari County (χ² = 4.984, P < 0.05), and significant differences were found in the prevalence of human echinococcosis in terms of populations, age groups, education level, dog breeding at home, presence of stray dogs or wild canines near the residence, and behaviors of lying on grass or biting grass (χ² = 9.298, 14.202, 10.426, 8.082, 7.247, all P < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified age group (OR = 2.075, 95% CI: 1.041 to 4.138), education level (OR = 0.440, 95% CI: 0.224 to 0.865), dog breeding at home (OR = 2.482, 95% CI: 1.017 to 6.057), and presence of stray dogs or wild canines near the residence (OR = 3.094, 95% CI: 1.096 to 8.732) as independent factors affecting the prevalence of human echinococcosis. Conclusion The management of Echinococcus infections is satisfactory in domestic dogs raised by pastoral households in Guoluo Prefecture, Qinghai Province; however, there are persistent risk factors for human Echinococcus infections, which requires reinforced health education for pastoral households and standardized management for canine breeding. Given the high prevalence of Echinococcus infections in wild canines, the control system targeting wild canines needs to be optimized to consolidate the gained echinococcosis control achievements.

Key words: Echinococcus granulosus, Echinococcosis, Infection factors, Guoluo

CLC Number:

R532.32

MA Wanli, CAI Huixia, LIU Jia, ZHANG Xiongying, WANG Wei, CHAO Jie, LIU Na, ZHANG Qing, JIA Deqiang, GUO Shuai, ZHAO Cunzhe, QI Tongsheng, ZHAN Peizhen, DING Yulian, LIU Yufang, LEI Wen, SHI Kemei. Prevalence of Echinococcus infections in canines and risk factors of human echinococcosis in Guoluo Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province[J]. CHINESE JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY AND PARASITIC DISEASES, 2026, 44(3): 351-357.

Figures/Tables 4

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变量 Variables	分类 Categories	调查数No.investigated	阳性数 No. positive	阳性率/%Positive rate/%	构成比/%Percentage /%	χ²	P
地区 Region	班玛县 Banma County	490	1	0.20	70.40	1.831	> 0.05
	达日县 Dari County	122	1	0.82	17.53
	久治县 Jiuzhi County	84	1	1.19	12.07
犬只功能 Canine function	宠物犬 Pet dog	2	0	0	0.29	3.289	> 0.05
	看家犬 Guard dog	503	2	0.40	72.27
	兼具看护与牧羊功能 Guardian and herding dogs	191	1	0.52	27.44
养犬方式 Type of raising dogs	散养 Free ranging	77	2	2.78	11.06	8.4	< 0.05
	白天栓，晚圈养 Tying dogs during daytime and fencing dogs during nighttime	35	0	0	5.03
	白天栓，晚放养Tying dogs by day and let them roam free by night.	134	1	0.75	19.25
	全天栓 Tying dogs all day	450	0	0	64.66
家庭屠宰情况/户 Household slaughtering/ households	3次以上/年 ≥ 3 times/year	1	0	0	0.22	3.31	> 0.05
	1~2次以上/年 1-2 times/year	64	0	0	13.94
	从不 Never	394	3	0.76	85.84
病畜脏器喂犬Feeding dogs with infected animal organs	是 Yes	57	0	0	8.19	0.269	> 0.05
病畜脏器喂犬Feeding dogs with infected animal organs	否 No	639	3	0.47	91.81
家犬野外觅食情况Foraging of domestic dogs in the field	是 Yes	36	1	2.78	5.17	0.812	> 0.05
家犬野外觅食情况Foraging of domestic dogs in the field	否 No	660	2	0.30	94.83
犬粪处理情况/户 Disposal of dog feces/household	未处理 Untreated	366	2	0.55	79.74	2.835	> 0.05
	不规范处理 Non-tandardized disposal	56	0	0	12.20
	规范处理 Standardized disposal	37	1	2.70	8.06
犬只驱虫情况 Dog deworming	3次以下 < 3 times/year	408	1	0.25	58.62	5.712	> 0.05
	3~6次 3-6 times/year	70	1	1.43	10.06
	6~9次 6-9 times/year	45	1	2.22	9.80
	9~12次 9-12 times/year	173	0	0	37.69

变量 Variables	分类 Categories	调查数 No. investigated	合格数 No. qualified	合格率/% Qualified rate/%	χ²	P
地区 Region	班玛县 Banma County	164	159	96.95	25.672	< 0.05
地区 Region	达日县 Dari County	182	142	78.02
养犬情况 Dog ownership	是 Yes	152	119	78.29	18.155	< 0.05
养犬情况 Dog ownership	否 No	194	182	93.81
住所周边野生犬科动物出没 Presence of wild canines nearby the residence	是 Yes	200	167	83.50	5.115	< 0.05
住所周边野生犬科动物出没 Presence of wild canines nearby the residence	否 No	146	134	91.78
躺草地并口衔草梗 Lying on the grassand biting grass	是 Yes	145	120	82.76	3.958	< 0.05
躺草地并口衔草梗 Lying on the grassand biting grass	否 No	201	181	90.05
牛羊脏器处理 Disposal of cattle and goat viscera	扔掉 Discarded	91	74	81.32	32.647	< 0.05
	喂犬 Feeding dogs	85	62	72.94
	深埋 Buried deeply	170	165	97.06

变量 Variables	分类 Categories	调查数 No. investigated	患者数 No. patients	患者占比/% Patient percentage/%	χ²	P
地区 Region	班玛县 Banma County	164	8	4.88	4.984	< 0.05
地区 Region	达日县 Dari County	182	21	11.54
年龄组/岁 Age Group/Years	10~17岁 10-17 years old	16	0	0	9.298	< 0.05
年龄组/岁 Age Group/Years	18~40岁 18-40 years old	173	8	4.62
	41~65岁 41-65 years old	149	20	13.42
	> 65岁 > 65years old	8	1	12.50
文化程度 Educational level	文盲 illiterate	123	20	16.26	14.202	< 0.05
文化程度 Educational level	小学 Primary school	167	7	4.19
	初中 Junior high school	33	2	6.06
	高中及以上 Senior high school and above	23	0	0
养犬情况 Dog ownership	是 Yes	152	21	13.82	10.426	< 0.05
养犬情况 Dog ownership	否 No	194	8	4.12
住所周边野生犬科动物出没 Canids nearby residence	是 Yes	200	24	12.00	8.082	< 0.05
住所周边野生犬科动物出没 Canids nearby residence	否 No	146	5	3.42
躺草地并口衔草梗 Lying and biting grass	是 Yes	145	19	13.10	7.247	< 0.05
躺草地并口衔草梗 Lying and biting grass	否 No	201	10	4.98

变量分类 Variables Categories	β	wald	P	OR	95% CI
年龄组 Age Group	0.730	4.299	0.038	2.075	1.041~4.138
文化程度 Educational level	-0.821	5.673	0.017	0.440	0.224~0.865
养犬情况 Dog ownership	0.906	3.988	0.046	2.482	1.017~6.057
住所周边野生犬科动物出没 Canids nearby residence	1.129	4.551	0.033	3.094	1.096~8.732