At long last, evidence supporting a link between the equine tapeworm Anoplocephala perfoliata and colic in horses was identified by a group of Italian researchers from the Universita degli Studi di Perugia.

Earlier thought held that A. perfoliata did not actually cause disease in horses, but that the parasites were simply an incidental finding in horses' guts.

According to the researchers, "since the 1980s, an increasing prevalence of case reports describing a close association between specific causes of equine colic, such as impaction, intestinal rupture, intussusception, volvulus, and large intestine obstructions and severe A. perfoliata infestations has increased the interest in the pathological effects of this parasite."

The researchers therefore sought to investigate changes in the equine gut associated with tapeworms at the junction between the last part of the small intestine (ileum) and the first part of the large intestine (cecum), referred to as the ileocecal junction. The team randomly selected 31 horses (11 parasite-free and 20 horses with spontaneous A. perfoliata infections) and evaluated the ileocecal junctions