Clinical and laboratory observations in 91 dogs infected with Dirofilaria immitis in northern Greece

Abstract

The medical records of 91 dogs with heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) infection were reviewed, and diagnoses were established by using parasitological and immunological methods. Twenty-one animals were asymptomatic (stage I), 57 had mild to moderate clinical signs (stage II), and 13 had the severe form of the disease including right congestive heart failure and the caval syndrome (stage III). Thoracic radiography revealed right ventricular enlargement in 38 of the dogs, pulmonary vascular enlargement in 43, and parenchymal lesions in 27. Only the cardiac and vascular changes were correlated positively with the clinical stages. D. immitis microfilaraemia was detected in 75 of 85 dogs. Occult infection occurred only in eight stage II and two stage III dogs. Thirty-two of the dogs were treated with thiacetarsamide and 39 were treated with melarsomine, and no differences were found in terms of drug efficacy or complication rate; nine stage II dogs suffered pulmonary thromboembolism and one suffered acute liver disease and there were six fatalities. The 50 treated dogs in stages II and III which were followed up for six months all recovered completely. The performance of 38 of 61 working dogs was completely restored, and the performance of another four was partially restored.

Cardiac tamponade secondary to hemorrhagic pericardial effiision in five dogs

“…In case 5, D. immitis infection should be considered as an incidental finding, because heartworm disease-associated PE, when present, is a modified transudate of low volume (Miller and Sisson 2000). Furthermore, the typical radiographic findings of advanced dirofilariosis, including dilatation and tortuosity of pulmonary artery and its branches (Polizopoulou et al 2000), were absent in this particular dog. Finally, serology for L. infantum is indicated, especially in Greece, in every case of PE, because the latter is an uncommon mani festation of canine leishmaniosis (Font et al 1993).…”

Evaluation of serum cystatinC concentrations in dogs infected with Dirofilaria immitis

“…One of the limitation is that the present study did not investigate the stage of the dirofilariasis as either asymptomatic or mild (stage I), moderate (stage II), or severe (stage III) (21). Unfortunately, enrolled cases also were not evaluated for co-infections anaplasmosis, leishmaniasis, lyme diseases which may lead renal failure.…”

Detection of Dirofilaria immitis in a brown bear (Ursus arctos) in Greece

“…This spread is probably facilitated by an increasing number of infected animals moving out of endemic areas, by the introduction of new species of vector mosquitoes, by environmental changes and by the increase of human activities in the new areas (Alho et al, 2014;Genchi et al, 2009;Morchón et al, 2012;Otranto et al, 2015). In Greece, dirofi lariosis is widespread in domestic dogs, especially in areas of Central and Northern Europe, where this disease is considered endemic (Polizopoulou et al, 2000). More specifi cally, in the region of Macedonia in Northern Greece the dog infection rate may be as high as 34.13 % (Founta et al, 1999).…”