Dr. Murai Éva - Gubányi András szerk.: Parasitologia Hungarica 28. (Budapest, 1995)

(syn. Alveococcus multilocularis Leuckart, 1863), too. According to their findings, the prevalence of alveolar echinococcosis is 0.05% in cattle, 0.02% in sheep, 0.016% in swine. Adult E. granulosus infestation was found in 72% of stray dogs living around slaughterhouses (with a worm count of 396-7831 per animal) and 37.3% of sheep-dogs, 7.3% of watch-dogs, 2.7% of dogs kept as pets were found to be infected (Olteanu and Panaitescu 1984). Nesterov et al. (1991) reported a 5.8% prevalence of E. granulosus infestation in wolves. In the period between 1962 and 1981, the prevalence of infestation by the larval form of E. granulosus (hydatidosis, EH) varied between 9.5% and 60.3% in cattle, and between 10.8%o and 65.9% in sheep inspected at several slaughterhouses in Romania. As regards the prevalence of infestation in free-living intermediate hosts, Nesterov et al (1973, 1991) reported an infestation rate of 4.8%) for fallow deer, 8.0% for chamois, 10.4% for wild boar, and 0.09% for hare. Food animals infected by hydatid cysts act as a permanent source of infection. Although cysts can be excised from moderately infected organs, organs with submacroscopic lesions might be consumed. To avoid this, it is reasonable to completely exclude the infected organs from public consumption. During the above-mentioned period, the quantity of condemned organs was more than 18 million kilograms per year. Cysts located in different organs can affect metabolism, markedly impairing the conception rate and production capacity of the infected animals. Larval E. multilocularis infestation (alveolar echinococcosis, AE) represents a malignant diagnosis in humans and rodents. The area of spread E. multilocularis includes the northern regions of America and Eurasia, Alaska, USA, Canada, the tundra-region of Europe and Asia, China and Japan (Hokkaido). Its hosts are arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), probably wild cats (Felis silvestris), domestic cats (F. catus) and perhaps some species of Mustelidae. Its intermediate hosts are rodents and humans. A large endemic area spreads from France to the Baltics, comprising Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Poland; exclusively its metacestode (echinococcus alveolaris) has been found in Turkey, Slovenia, Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania (Vogel 1960, Senk and Brglez 1966, Rausch 1967, 1968a, 1968b, 1986a, 1986b, Ohbayashi et al 1971, Petavy and Deblock 1980, Genov et al. 1980, 1981, Zeihle 1982, Frank 1987, Worbes et al 1988, Auer and Aspöck 1991, Eckert et al. 1991, Prosl and Schmid 1991, Stoye 1990, Worbes 1992, Ewald and Eckert 1993, Malczewski et al. 1995). The intermediate hosts are rodents and humans. Studying the human consequences of the epidemiologic circulation of Echinococcus species, Arseni et al. (1981) reported a morbidity rate of 5.6%> in Romania, and stated that 1.9%) of these cases were lethal. Examinations using IDR Casoni type reaction (Casoni skin test) proved that 22.6% of people working on cattle forms and 11.01% of shepherds were infected (Olteanu and Panaitescu 1984). During the 10-year period between 1979 and 1988, 8557 patients were hospitalized and operated upon with the diagnosis of EH in Romania: 516 (6%) of them died, and 210,000 days of hospital treatment were needed (Stefanoiu 1991). Until now, only sporadic surveys have been made on this subject in Covasna County, where - in our experiences - Echinococcus is responsible for more severe losses than in any other district of Romania. Thus, the publication of our systematic epidemiological observations made at slaughterhouses and in villages belonging to the Veterinary Directorate of Covasna County during a 10 year period seems to be timely.