**5. Risk factors for porcine cysticercosis**

Pigs may get infected with *T. solium* or *T. asiatica* if they consume eggs shed by human tapeworm carriers. Although both parasites harm humans, only *T. solium* causes neurocysticercosis, a serious public health problem worldwide. Furthermore, both parasites have an economic influence on the livestock sector. *T. solium* and *T. asiatica* have the same transmission paths from humans to pigs and back. Site transmission may therefore be addressed using comparable intervention strategies. Cysticercosis can be caused by *T. solium* in both humans and pigs. The major cysticercosis risk factor is the presence of adult *T. solium* in human carriers. The main

#### **Figure 3.**

*Risk factors for bovine cysticercosis [9–13].*

risk factor for humans getting adult *T. solium* is the inclusion of contaminated pork in the food chain. Free-range pig rearing and the absence or incorrect use of latrines are other *T. solium* cysticercosis risk factors in pigs. These risk factors are prevalent in many low-income Latin American, Asian, and sub-Saharan African countries. Increased age, feedstuff, and dirt floors have also been identified as *T. solium* cysticercosis risk factors in pigs [14–18]. In endemic areas with improper use or a lack of latrines, causing public defecation, roaming pigs are more likely to contract *T. solium* cysticercosis. Low-income endemic regions with free-roaming pigs, indiscriminate feces contamination, and poor personal and meat hygiene, inadequate or nonexistent meat inspection, are particularly susceptible to *T. solium* infection. These risk factors are strongly associated with illiteracy, choices in life, and poverty. In addition, milder infections are typically brought on by indirect transmission, while heavier infections are typically brought on by infective egg direct ingestion produced by *Taenia* carriers. Although we emphasize the seriousness of severe infections, we propose that moderate infections pose a hidden risk and a distinct public health concern because it is more possible that both pre- and postmortem examinations will miss them, allowing them to enter the food chain and pose a public health risk [19].
