Dipylidiasis is a rare zoonotic infectious disease caused by Dipylidium caninum, a common intestinal tapeworm of dogs and cats. Humans get infection by accidental ingestion of the intermediate hosts. This parasitic disease is first described in humans in 1758.
Intermediate hosts include the dog flea (Ctenocephalides canis), the cat flea (C. felis) and occasionally the human flea (Pulex irritans), as well as the chewing louse of dogs (Trichodectes canis).
