Dirofilaria species

Miterpáková, Martina, Valentová, Daniela & Hurníková, Zuzana, 2023, Dirofilaria immitis conquering the regions in Slovakia previously endemic for D. repens, Parasitology Research (2945) 122 (12), pp. 2945-2950 : 2946-2947

Dirofilaria species occurrence

Within the study, altogether 330 dogs were found to be positive for canine dirofilariosis by private veterinary practitioners. The age of the dogs varied from 1 to 15 years (in 26 individuals the age was not referred to); 144 of them were females and 186 were males. Out of 330 dogs, 170 were kept by private owners, and 160 came from two dog shelters situated in Komárno and Nové Zámky districts.

The diagnosis was predetermined based on microfilariae presence (n = 284) and/or positive result of the heartworm antigen test (n = 82). Thirty-six of 82 D. immitis –seropositive dogs revealed also microfilariae in the blood; contrary, the remaining 46 seropositive dogs tested negative using Knott’s test. The diagnostic procedures and their results are illustrated in Figure 2 .

DNA analysis of 284 microfilaraemic blood samples confirmed the mono-infection with D. repens in 132 dogs (46.48%), D. immitis in 63 animals (22.18%), and D. repens and D. immitis co-infection in 89 individuals (31.33%). In total, heartworm infection, confirmed either by DNA analysis or by serology, was diagnosed in 198 out of 330 dogs examined, which represents 60.00% of Dirofilaria -positive dogs included in the study ( Figure 2 ).

Considering dogs from shelters independently, the majority of the animals, 79 of 160, were infected with D. immitis (49.38%), in 42 (26.25%) of them co-infection with both dirofilarial species was confirmed, and in 39 (24.38%) the mono-infection with D. repens was diagnosed.

Figures

Fig. 2 The study flowchart: Dirofilaria species determination procedures in 330 dogs tested positive for dirofilariosis