Cysticercosis is acquired by which of the following?

• A. Swallowing tapeworm eggs found in human feces
• B. Eating undercooked pork containing cysticerci
• C. Inhaling tapeworm eggs
• D. Direct contact with an infected person

Answer: (A)

In cysticercosis, the infection happens when a person ingests Taenia solium eggs shed in the feces of someone with an intestinal tapeworm. Once swallowed, these eggs hatch in the intestine and release larvae that penetrate the intestinal wall and spread through the body via the bloodstream. They form cysticerci (larval cysts) in tissues such as muscle, eyes, and the central nervous system, which is why neurocysticercosis can be so serious.

Eating undercooked pork containing cysticerci leads to taeniasis, an intestinal tapeworm infection, not cysticercosis, because you're ingesting the larval cysts themselves rather than the eggs that would start larval development in the body. Inhaling tapeworm eggs or having direct contact with an infected person do not constitute effective routes to cysticercosis.