Improved methods for recovering eggs of <i>Toxocara canis</i> from soil

Abstract

The ingestion of soil in parks and public places containing eggs of Toxocara may constitute a significant health risk, particularly to children. To determine the most efficient method for extracting eggs from experimentally contaminated soil, two consecutive studies were undertaken. Four techniques, including washing, sieving, vacuum, and the one recommended by the World Health Organization, were evaluated. Recovery rates of over 85% were recorded with both washing and sieving methods. Using the washing technique, all combinations of the four pre-treatment solutions, distilled water, acetoacetic solution pH 5, 0.1 n sodium hydroxide and 1% Tween 20, and seven flotation fluids with different specific gravities (S.G.) ranging from 1.20 to 1.35 were assayed. The association of distilled water and saccharose solution with an S.G. of 1.27 showed the best results, with a recovery rate of 99.91%.