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Microbiology · Nematodes

Ancylostoma braziliense / Ancylostoma caninum !

  • Parasite
  • Exam priority: medium

A dog and cat hookworm. Its larva enters the skin on sandy beaches and leaves a red, winding, very itchy track.

Updated 2026-11-01

Also called: cutaneous larva migrans, dog and cat hookworm, creeping eruption

At a glance

Shape
Larva that leaves a serpiginous track in the epidermis
Family
Ancylostomatidae
Type
Dog and cat nematode (zoonotic hookworm)
Size
Filariform larva under 1 mm

Morphology

  • Humans harbour only filariform larvae in the epidermis.
  • The eggs, in dog and cat faeces, look like those of human hookworms.
  • Biopsy shows an eosinophilic infiltrate; the larva is rarely seen.

Transmission

  • Skin contact with moist sand or soil contaminated with dog or cat faeces.
  • Walking barefoot, sitting or lying on beach sand and yards.
  • Not spread between people.

Reservoir: Dogs and cats; Moist sand and soil

Isolation precautions

What the care team adds to standard precautions.

  • Standard

Life cycle

  1. Dogs and cats pass eggs in faeces onto moist sand or soil.
  2. The eggs hatch in 1–2 days and give infective filariform larvae in 5–10 days.
  3. In the dog, the larva penetrates skin, passes through the lung and matures in the gut.
  4. In humans the larva penetrates skin but cannot go on: it is trapped in the epidermis.
  5. There it moves millimetres to a few centimetres a day, leaving a raised, red, very itchy track.
  6. Untreated, it dies in weeks to months; A. caninum sometimes causes eosinophilic enteritis.

Virulence factors

  • Proteolytic enzymes let it penetrate skin.
  • In humans it cannot cross the basement membrane, so it stays in the epidermis.
  • The inflammatory reaction to the larva causes the intense itch.

Diseases it causes

Clinical picture

  • Red, raised, serpiginous track on the feet, buttocks or hands.
  • Intense itch, sometimes vesicles or bullae.
  • Bacterial superinfection from scratching.
  • Rarely, cough and eosinophilia from lung passage.

Diagnosis

  • Clinical diagnosis from the lesion and a history of contact with sand.
  • No serology is available.
  • Biopsy is not recommended because the larva is almost never found.

Treatment

Oral antiparasitics (ivermectin or albendazole); topical thiabendazole is an alternative. Antibiotics for superinfection.

Drug class only; doses and regimens are set by the clinician from the current guideline.

In Pharmacology:

Prevention

  • Wear shoes on beaches and in yards.
  • Sit on towels or chairs, not directly on the sand.
  • Deworm dogs and cats and keep them from defecating on beaches.
  • Pick up pet faeces.

Test yourself

Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.

Why does the A. braziliense larva stay in the human epidermis?

Because it cannot cross the basement membrane and cannot complete its cycle in humans.

How is cutaneous larva migrans diagnosed?

Clinically, from the serpiginous track and a history of contact with contaminated sand or soil.

How does it differ from Strongyloides larva currens?

Larva currens moves very fast, usually on the buttocks and perineum; cutaneous larva migrans moves slowly, usually on the feet.

Which measure prevents cutaneous larva migrans at the beach?

Wearing shoes and not lying directly on sand where dogs or cats defecate.

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Educational content on microorganisms; not a treatment guide and no substitute for a health professional's advice. No doses are given.

Sources: CDC - DPDx - Zoonotic Hookworm (CDC, 2019); Parasitosis humanas (Corporación para Investigaciones Biológicas (CIB), 2019).

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Representative model, for educational purposes only.