Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Comparing two heartworm tests for dogs in the southern US
By Burton, K W et al.·Published in Veterinary parasitology·2020·IDEXX Laboratories, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Comparative evaluation of field samples using 2 in-clinic assays for heartworm antigen detection in dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs in the Southern United States were tested for heartworm infection using two different in-clinic tests. The SNAP 4Dx Plus Test was found to be much better at detecting heartworm antigens compared to the VETSCAN FLEX4 Test, with a sensitivity of 97.4% versus 76.9%. Both tests were highly specific, meaning they accurately identified dogs without heartworm. This information can help veterinarians choose the most effective test for diagnosing heartworm in dogs, ensuring timely and appropriate treatment.
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Abstract
Dirofilaria immitis (heartworm) antigen testing is routinely performed in veterinary practices to detect canine heartworm infections. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of two in-clinic assays to detect heartworm antigen on field samples from practices in heartworm endemic regions. Veterinary staff in 3 practices located in the Southern United States performed a side by side comparison of the SNAP® 4Dx® Plus Test (IDEXX) and the VETSCAN FLEX4® Test (Zoetis) on samples from canine patients presented for vector-borne disease screening. Assays were performed according to the manufacturer's instructions. The remaining plasma sample was submitted for confirmatory testing using the PetChek® Heartworm Test (IDEXX) including immune complex dissociation (ICD) by heat treatment. A total of 232 samples were evaluated by the two in-clinic assays and PetChek Test. SNAP 4Dx Plus was significantly more sensitive for the detection of heartworm antigen in this study; sensitivity was 97.4 % for the SNAP 4Dx Plus test and 76.9 % for VETSCAN FLEX4 test (p < 0.01). The specificity of both tests was 99.5 %. This study reveals significant difference in detecting canine heartworm antigen in field samples.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32593058/