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PARASITIC MEMBER OF CLASS CILIATA
ORGANISM 1--Balantidium Coli
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
Only ciliate parasitic to man.
COMMON NAME: Balantidiasis, balantidial dysentery.
PATHOGENESIS: Invasion of intestinal mucosa and submucosa.
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION: Cosmopolitan.
HABITAT: Cecum.
INTERMEDIATE HOST: None.
RESERVOIR HOST: Hogs.
INFECTIVE FORM: Mature cyst.
MODE OF INFECTION: Ingestion.
LABORATORY IDENTIFICATION:
SPECIMEN OF CHOICE: Feces.
Figure 2-2. Life cycle of Balantidium coli.
MD0842
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