Parasitic zoonotic diseases in Turkey.

Zoonoses and zoonotic diseases are becoming more common and they are now receiving increased attention across the world. Zoonotic parasites are found in a wide variety of protozoa, cestodes, nematodes, trematodes and arthropods worldwide and many zoonotic parasites have assumed an important role. The importance of some parasitic zoonoses has increased in recent years due to the fact that they can be agents of opportunistic infections. Although a number of zoonotic parasites are often found and do cause serious illnesses in Turkey, some are more common and these diseases are more important as they cause serious public health problems, such as leishmaniasis, toxoplasmosis, cryptosporidiosis, echinococcosis, trichinellosis and toxocariasis. Information on these zoonotic diseases is provided here as these are the most important zoonotic parasitic diseases in Turkey.