BackgroundCats can be carriers of infected arthropods and be infected with several vector-borne pathogens (VBP) but there is limited knowledge about their pathogenic role in cats.ResultsA cross-sectional controlled study investigated the clinical status and antibody (Bartonella henselae, Rickettsia conorii, Ehrlichia canis, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Babesia microti and Leishmania infantum) and/or blood PCR (Mycoplasma spp., Bartonella spp., Rickettsia spp., Ehrlichia/Anaplasma spp., piroplasmids, L. infantum, Hepatozoon felis) prevalence in 197 cats. Outdoor cats lacking ectoparasiticide treatment or hosting ectoparasites (study group [SG], n = 134) and indoor cats treated against ectoparasites (control group [CG], n = 63) were enrolled. Clinical data and retroviral co-infections were compared between the two groups. Multivariable analysis tested associations between variables and VBP exposure. Lymphadenia, stomatitis, and various haematological abnormalities were statistically more frequent in SG. Antibodies against R. conorii, B. henselae, A. phagocytophylum, B. microti, E. canis and L. infantum were detected. Bartonella henselae, Bartonella clarridgeiae, Mycoplasma haemofelis, “Candidatus Mycoplasma haemominutum” and “Candidatus Mycoplasma turicensis” DNA were identified. Very high antibody (87.8%) and PCR (40.1%) positivity to at least one pathogen were detected and were significantly higher in SG. Co-infections were confirmed in about one-third of the cats and were more frequent in SG cats. Molecular and overall (antibody and PCR) positivity to Bartonella and antibody positivity to R. conorii were higher in SG. Multivariable analysis found significant associations of Bartonella spp. infection with Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) infection and increased globulins, and of Mycoplasma spp. infection with adult age, FIV infection, anaemia, and increased creatinine.ConclusionsA very high prevalence of exposure to zoonotic VBP was found in cats, with Rickettsia and Bartonella infections being most prevalent. Some risk factors were documented namely for Mycoplasma spp. and Bartonella spp. The lifestyle of cats is clinically relevant and requires specific preventative measures to protect their health.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13071-018-2725-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

BackgroundAnti-Leishmania antibodies are increasingly investigated in cats for epidemiological studies or for the diagnosis of clinical feline leishmaniosis. The immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT), the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and western blot (WB) are the serological tests more frequently used. The aim of the present study was to assess diagnostic performance of IFAT, ELISA and WB to detect anti-L. infantum antibodies in feline serum samples obtained from endemic (n = 76) and non-endemic (n = 64) areas and from cats affected by feline leishmaniosis (n = 21) by a Bayesian approach without a gold standard.MethodsCut-offs were set at 80 titre for IFAT and 40 ELISA units for ELISA. WB was considered positive in presence of at least a 18 KDa band. Statistical analysis was performed through a written routine with MATLAB software in the Bayesian framework. The latent data and observations from the joint posterior were simulated in the Bayesian approach by an iterative Markov Chain Monte Carlo technique using the Gibbs sampler for estimating sensitivity and specificity of the three tests.ResultsThe median seroprevalence in the sample used for evaluating the performance of tests was estimated at 0.27 [credible interval (CI) = 0.20–0.34]. The median sensitivity of the three different methods was 0.97 (CI: 0.86–1.00), 0.75 (CI: 0.61–0.87) and 0.70 (CI: 0.56–0.83) for WB, IFAT and ELISA, respectively. Median specificity reached 0.99 (CI: 0.96–1.00) with WB, 0.97 (CI: 0.93–0.99) with IFAT and 0.98 (CI: 0.94–1.00) with ELISA. IFAT was more sensitive than ELISA (75 vs 70%) for the detection of subclinical infection while ELISA was better for diagnosing clinical leishmaniosis when compared with IFAT (98 vs 97%).ConclusionsThe overall performance of all serological techniques was good and the most accurate test for anti-Leishmania antibody detection in feline serum samples was WB.

Purpose Local neck symptoms (LNS) may be related to goiter, but are also reported by patients suffering from laryngeal–pharyngeal reflux (LPR). The aim of this study was to investigate whether LPR could play a role in the persistence of some LNS after total thyroidectomy (TT). Methods A consecutive case series of 160 patients with multinodular goiter (MNG) candidate for TT were included in this study. Each patient was closely studied for both the thyroid pathology and reflux disease before and 6 months after surgery to assess the persistence of LNS after surgery. Results Only throat discomfort showed a significant improvement (p  = 0.031) after surgery. On the other hand, swallowing and voice disorders persisted after surgery in 82.3% and 77.3% of patients, respectively (p  = 0.250 and p  = 0.062), such as the correlated reflux laryngopharyngitis (p  = 0.5). Conclusions LPR can be considered a predisposing factor or an important concurrent causa to the persistence of LNS after TT, in particular for swallowing disorders and voice disorders. In patients with non-toxic MNG who complain of local neck symptoms, the investigation of a possible coexistence of a reflux disease is appropriate before surgery. Patients should be informed about the possibility that some symptoms can persist even after removal of the goiter.

-Objectives: The aim of this study was to show the potential of Bayesian analysis in statistical modelling of dental caries data. Because of the bounded nature of the dmft (DMFT) index, zero-inflated binomial (ZIB) and beta-binomial (ZIBB) models were considered. The effects of incorporating prior information available about the parameters of models were also shown. Methods: The data set used in this study was the Belo Horizonte Caries Prevention (BELCAP) study (Bö hning et al. (1999)), consisting of five variables collected among 797 Brazilian school children designed to evaluate four programmes for reducing caries. Only the eight primary molar teeth were considered in the data set. A data augmentation algorithm was used for estimation. Firstly, noninformative priors were used to express our lack of knowledge about the regression parameters. Secondly, prior information about the probability of being a structural zero dmft and the probability of being caries affected in the subpopulation of susceptible children was incorporated. Results: With noninformative priors, the best fitting model was the ZIBB. Education (OR = 0.76, 95% CrI: 0.59, 0.99), all interventions (OR = 0.46, 95% CrI: 0.35, 0.62), rinsing (OR = 0.61, 95% CrI: 0.47, 0.80) and hygiene (OR = 0.65, 95% CrI: 0.49, 0.86) were demonstrated to be factors protecting children from being caries affected. Being male increased the probability of being caries diseased (OR = 1.19, 95% CrI: 1.01, 1.42). However, after incorporating informative priors, ZIB models' estimates were not influenced, while ZIBB models reduced deviance and confirmed the association with all interventions and rinsing only. Discussion: In our application, Bayesian estimates showed a similar accuracy and precision than likelihood-based estimates, although they offered many computational advantages and the possibility of expressing all forms of uncertainty in terms of probability. The overdispersion parameter could expound why the introduction of prior information had significant effects on the parameters of the ZIBB model, while ZIB estimates remained unchanged. Finally, the best performance of ZIBB compared to the ZIB model was shown to catch overdispersion in data. Statistical models play a key role in epidemiology to provide the best representation of oral health data and interpretation of the data generation process. Final indicators deriving from each model's results are helpful for epidemiologist working in the oral health field, with the aim of achieving the goals set by international institutions such as the World Health Organization.Bayesian and Frequentist are the two souls of statistical modelling. Frequentist probability is

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