Families, parks, gardens and toxocariasis

Toxocara canis antibody titres were measured in members of 30 families. 73/140 (52.1%) family members were seropositive for T. canis at a dilution greater than or equal to 1:50 and 11 (7.8%) had reciprocal titres greater than or equal to 800. Toxocara ova were sought (a) in relation to the 30 families and (b) in the community. No toxocara ova were found in household dust samples. 38% of family gardens contained toxocara ova while 6% of soil samples from public parks and open spaces around housing estates were positive. None of the faecal specimens from pet dogs were positive for toxocara ova as compared to 6.2% of stray dogs. 5.3% of canine faecal samples from the streets contained toxocara ova. In this study household garden soil was a potentially greater source of toxocara infection than soil in public parks and open spaces.