[Durgical](https://durgical.com/en/) › [DurgiPedia](https://durgical.com/en/durgipedia/) › [Microbiology](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/) › [Cestodes (tapeworms)](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/groups/cestodes/) › Taenia multiceps (coenurosis)

# Taenia multiceps (coenurosis)

- Parasite
- For completeness

A dog tapeworm whose larva forms a cyst in sheep. If a person swallows its eggs, a cyst can grow in the brain, the eye or under the skin.

Updated Nov 13, 2026

Also called: Multiceps multiceps, Coenurus cerebralis, Taenia serialis, coenurus

## Quick facts

**Type**
Parasite · [Cestodes (tapeworms)](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/groups/cestodes/)

**Gram / shape**
Fluid-filled cyst

**Spread**
Swallowing eggs passed in the faeces

**Causes**
Cerebral coenurosis · Ocular coenurosis

**Treatment**
Surgical removal of the cyst is the mainstay

On this page

- The basics Key points
- At a glance
- Morphology
- Transmission
- Life cycle
- In Colombia
- Memory aid
- What the colours mean

- Clinical Virulence factors
- Diseases it causes
- Clinical picture
- Diagnosis

- Treatment Treatment
- Prevention

- Study Test yourself

- Connections Connections

## Key points

- Dog → sheep cycle; humans swallow dog-faeces eggs.
- Coenurus = one cyst with many scolices (cysticercus has one; hydatid has daughter cysts).
- Brain and eye (T. multiceps); subcutis (T. serialis).
- Mimics neurocysticercosis; diagnosis by histology after surgery.

## At a glance

**Shape**
Fluid-filled cyst with many scolices on its inner wall (coenurus)

**Family**
Taeniidae

**Type**
Cestode; humans host only the larval stage (coenurus)

**Size**
Cysts from a few millimetres to several centimetres

## Morphology

- A coenurus has many protoscolices on its inner wall, unlike a cysticercus with only one.
- It has no daughter cysts and no brood capsules, unlike a hydatid cyst.
- The adult tapeworm lives only in canids.

## Transmission

- Swallowing eggs passed in the faeces of infected dogs or other canids.
- Contaminated hands, food, water or soil, especially in sheep-farming areas.

**Reservoir:** Dogs, foxes and other canids (definitive hosts); Sheep and goats for T. multiceps; rabbits for T. serialis (intermediate hosts)

### Isolation precautions

What the care team adds to standard precautions.

- Standard

## Life cycle

- The adult tapeworm lives in a dog's intestine and sheds eggs in its faeces.
- A sheep, goat or other herbivore swallows the eggs; the oncosphere enters the blood.
- In about three months a coenurus forms, classically in the sheep's brain (gid, or staggers).
- A dog becomes infected by eating the infected head or organs of the sheep.
- A person swallows eggs by accident; coenuri form in the brain, eye or subcutis and the cycle ends.

## Virulence factors

- The cyst grows slowly and acts as a space-occupying lesion.
- In the brain it raises intracranial pressure or blocks the CSF flow (hydrocephalus).
- In the eye it causes inflammation and loss of vision.

## Diseases it causes

- Cerebral coenurosis: headache, seizures, focal deficits or hydrocephalus, similar to neurocysticercosis
- Ocular coenurosis: intraocular or orbital cyst with visual loss
- Subcutaneous or muscular coenurosis: painless nodules on the trunk, neck or limbs

## Clinical picture

- Neurological signs depend on where the cyst sits; it may present years after infection.
- Subcutaneous nodules are often taken for lipomas, ganglion cysts or congenital cysts.
- T. multiceps favours the brain and eye; T. serialis favours the subcutis.

## Diagnosis

- CT or MRI shows a cystic lesion; it cannot be distinguished from a cysticercus on imaging alone.
- Confirmation is histological: a cyst with multiple protoscolices.
- Serology is experimental; PCR on tissue can identify the species.

## Treatment

Surgical removal of the cyst is the mainstay; albendazole and sometimes praziquantel are used as adjuncts, with caution in eye lesions because dying parasites inflame the eye.

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

In Pharmacology:

- [Albendazole](https://durgical.com/en/pharmacology/albendazole/)
- [Praziquantel](https://durgical.com/en/pharmacology/praziquantel/)

## Prevention

- Deworm dogs regularly in sheep-raising areas.
- Do not feed dogs raw sheep heads or offal; dispose of carcasses safely.
- Hand hygiene after handling dogs; wash vegetables.

## In Colombia

Human coenurosis is rare everywhere; most cases come from Africa, with others from sheep-raising areas of Europe and the Americas, including South America.

## Memory aid

Multi-ceps = many heads: one cyst crowded with scolices, from the dog that ate the dizzy sheep's brain.

## Test yourself

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

## What distinguishes a coenurus from a cysticercus?

A coenurus has many protoscolices on its inner wall; a cysticercus has only one.

## What are the definitive and intermediate hosts of Taenia multiceps?

Dogs and other canids are definitive hosts; sheep and goats are the usual intermediate hosts.

## Where does Taenia multiceps usually form cysts in humans?

In the brain and the eye; subcutaneous cysts are more typical of Taenia serialis.

[Add to my cards (3)](https://durgical.app/estudiar/?add=/en/microbiology/taenia-multiceps/)

## What the colours mean

**Gram-positive**
Thick peptidoglycan wall: stains purple.

**Gram-negative**
Thin wall with an outer membrane: stains pink.

**Acid-fast**
Lipid-rich wall (mycobacteria): Ziehl–Neelsen stain.

## Connections

## Related 3

- [Taenia solium](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/taenia-solium/)
- [Echinococcus granulosus](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/echinococcus-granulosus/)
- [Echinococcus multilocularis and E. oligarthrus](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/echinococcus-multilocularis-and-e-oligarthrus/)

[← Back to the group: Cestodes (tapeworms)](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/groups/cestodes/)

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

Sources: [CDC - DPDx - Coenurosis](https://www.cdc.gov/dpdx/coenurosis/index.html) (CDC, 2019); [Human Coenurosis Caused by Taenia multiceps Mimicking a Thyroglossal Duct Cyst in a Child: A Case Report](https://www.dovepress.com/human-coenurosis-caused-by-taenia-multiceps-mimicking-a-thyroglossal-d-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-IMCRJ) (International Medical Case Reports Journal (Dove Medical Press), 2026).

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Representative model, for educational purposes only.

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License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/taenia-multiceps/