Current Surveys on the Prevalence and Distribution of Dirofilaria spp. in Dogs in Germany

Abstract

The Central Upper-Rhine (Baden-Württemberg, Germany) is one of the warmest regions in Germany and also harbours abundant numbers of mosquitoes. Case reports on presumably autochthonous occurrence of Dirofilaria spp. were reported previously and were a reason for a further investigation into the occurrence of vector-borne pathogens. For this purpose, 44 hunting dogs from the Central Upper-Rhine region were tested between 4(th) and 29(th) June 2007. The blood samples were tested using the Knott's test and IDEXX SNAP 4Dx test. The Knott's test revealed unsheathed microfilaria identified as Dirofilaria repens by PCR in 3 dogs with no history of travelling (6.8%; 95% CI: 2.4-18.2%). The seroprevalence for Anaplasma phagocytophilum was 43.2% (95% CI: 29.7-57.8%), but only 4.5% (95% CI: 1.3-15.1%) for antibodies to Borrelia C6 peptide. Dirofilaria immitis antigen was not detected in any of the samples. A further 288 blood samples from non-hunting companion dogs of the Central Upper-Rhine region were tested negative for heartworm antigen between February and August 2007.

Retrospective Analysis of Canine Vector-borne Diseases (CVBD) in Germany with Emphasis on the Endemicity and Risk Factors of Leishmaniosis

“…Whole blood samples (n = 440) were examined for microfilariae using a modified Knott's test according to Pantchev et al (2009aPantchev et al ( , 2011. Serum samples (n = 9,381) were tested for circulated D. immitis antigen by a commercial rapid assay test system (IDEXX SNAP ® canine heartworm ® ) following the manufacturer's instructions (see also Pantchev et al (2009b)).…”

Diagnosis of Imported Canine Filarial Infections in Germany 2008 – 2010

“…In the present study, D. repens was the most common imported canine filarial infection, and it originated from many European countries. Climate change has been proposed as a possible factor for spreading of Dirofilaria infections into the North of Europe (Genchi et al 2008;Pantchev et al 2009a). However, D. immitis is so far not autochthonous in Germany, in contrast to D. repens (Pantchev et al 2009a), and in northern France (Pantchev et al 2009b).…”

“…Climate change has been proposed as a possible factor for spreading of Dirofilaria infections into the North of Europe (Genchi et al 2008;Pantchev et al 2009a). However, D. immitis is so far not autochthonous in Germany, in contrast to D. repens (Pantchev et al 2009a), and in northern France (Pantchev et al 2009b). D. repens infections in dogs are mostly asymptomatic or they are occasionally misidentified as subcutaneous tumour (Fig.…”

“…The first autochthonous case of canine cutaneous dirofilariasis in Germany (hunting dog with ocular infection) was documented in the Central Upper-Rhine valley in July 2004 (Hermosilla et al 2006). In the same region, the Knott's test revealed unsheathed microfilariae identified as Dirofilaria repens by PCR in further 3 (6.8 %; 95% CI: 2.4 -18.2 %) of 44 hunting dogs without history of travelling (Pantchev et al 2009a). In a kennel of 29 sled dogs living in the proximity of Berlin, five animals were found to be positive for D. repens microfilariae in 2007.…”

Granulomatous metritis caused by suspected Dirofilaria immitis in a dog: a case report

“…Knott's test is widely known as an effective diagnostic tool for identifying microfilariae of several filarial nematodes (Mylonakis et al 2004;Pantchev et al 2009). In the present study, a Knott's test was not performed at the local animal hospital because the Dirofilaria immitis antigen detection test result was negative.…”