Classifications of Medically Significant Parasites

Protozoa - type and body sites

• Amebae - intestinal

• Flagellates - intestinal

• Ciliates - intestinal

• Coccidia - intestinal

• Amoeba - other body sites

• Miscellaneous protozoa - other body sites

• Sporozoa - blood and tissue

• Hemoflagellates - blood and tissue

Nematodes (roundworms) - body sites

• intestinal

• tissue

• blood and tissue (filarial)

Cestodes (flatworms) - genus and species

• Taenia saginata

• Taenia solium

• Diphyllobothrium latum

• Echinococcus granulosus

• Hymenolepsis diminuta

• Dipylidium caninum

Trematodes (flukes) - body site

• blood

• intestinal, liver, or lung

Amebae - intestinal

• Entamoeba histolytica

• Entamoeba coli

• Entamoeba hartmani

• Entamoeba polecki

• Iodamoeba butschilii

• Endolimax nana

• Blactomyces hominis

Flagellates - intestinal

• Giardia lamblia

• Trichomonas hominis

• Trichomonas vaginalis

• Dientamoeba fragilis

• Chilomastix mesnili

Ciliate - intestinal

• Balantidium coli

Coccidia - intestinal

• Cryptosporidium parvum

• Cystoisospora belli

• Sarcocystis spp.

• Cyanobacteria-like or Coccidia-like bodies

• Microsporidians

Amoeba - other body sites

• Naegleria fowleri

• Acanthamoeba

• Hartmannella

Miscellaneous protozoa - other body sites

• Toxoplasma gondii (coccidia)

• Pneumocystis carinii (sporozoan or fungi)

• Microsporidians

Sporozoa - blood and tissue

• Plasmodium falciparum

• Plasmodium vivax

• Plasmodium malariae

• Plasmodium ovale

• Babesia spp.

Hemoflagellates - blood and tissue

• Trypanosoma brucei ssp. gambiense

• Trypanosoma brucei ssp. rhodesiense

• Trypanosoma cruzi

• Leishmania tropica

• Leishmania donovani

• Leishmania braziliensis

• Leishmania mexicana

Intestinal nematodes

• Necator americanus

• Ancylostoma braziliense

• Enterobius vermicularis

• Trichuris trichiura

• Ascaris lumbricoides

• Strongyloides stercoralis

Tissue nematodes

• Trichinella spiralis

• Toxocana canis

Blood and tissue nematodes - filarial worms

• Wuchereria bancrofti

• Brugia malayi

• Loa loa

• Onchocerca colculus

• Mansonella spp.

Blood flukes

• Schistosoma mansoni

• Schistosoma haematobium

• Schistosoma japonicum

Intestinal, liver, or lung flukes

• Fasciola buski

• Fasciola hepatica

• Clonorchis (Opisthorchis) sinensis

• Paragonimus westermani