Prevalence of in definitive and intermediate hosts collected from agricultural areas in Ampayon, Butuan City, Southern Philippines.

Angiostrongyliasis is a parasitic disease and a leading cause of human eosinophilic meningoencephalitis caused by rat lungworm . This parasite infects a wide range of animal hosts, including snails and rats, which plays a significant role in zoonotic transmission. The study was conducted to determine the prevalence of   infection in freshwater snails and definitive rat hosts in the agricultural area in Ampayon, Butuan City, Philippines. A total of 54 rat samples and 719 snail individuals were collected in June and July 2020. An overall 2.36% prevalence rate of  snail infection was recorded, consisting of  and , with a prevalence rate of 4.05% and 1.38%, respectively. Results revealed an overall prevalence of 38.9% in rat infection.  (48.48%) showed a higher infection than  (23.80%). Higher infection rates were found in rice field environments than residential houses, with 44.12% and 30% prevalence rates, respectively. Moreover, male rats showed higher infection rates (50%) than female rats (26.92%). Among age classes, adult rats had significantly higher infection rates (48.57%) than juvenile rats (21.05%). Correlation analysis showed a significant positive correlation between  infection intensity to the body length (r = 0.603;  = 0.001) and body weight (r = 0.715;  = 0.000) of rats. The study exemplifies the critical role of intermediate and definitive hosts for angiostrongyliasis. Infected freshwater snails and rats in rice fields make these agricultural areas a venue for  emergence. Integrated actions, health education campaigns, surveillance, hygiene, and good farming practices will help prevent the potential risk of the transmission of angiostrongyliasis in the area.