Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Detecting Leishmania infection in dogs using eye swabs and blood
By Mejía-Chimá, Wilmer A et al.·Published in Journal of vector borne diseases·2024·University of Sucre·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Comparison of conjunctival swabs and blood samples in dogs for molecular and serological detection of Leishmania infantum infection in Colombia.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs in Colombia were tested for a parasite called Leishmania that can cause serious health issues. Researchers collected both blood samples and conjunctival swabs (samples from the eye area) from 121 dogs to see which method was better for detecting the infection. They found that about 28% of the dogs were infected, with similar detection rates from both types of samples. This suggests that using conjunctival swabs could be a less invasive way to monitor for this infection in dogs, which might make it easier for veterinarians to test pets in the future.
People also search for: dog eye infection Leishmania · how to test for Leishmania in dogs · non-invasive tests for dog parasites
Abstract
BACKGROUND OBJECTIVES: Surveillance of canine leishmaniasis in Colombia is restricted to the appearance of visceral leishmaniasis cases in humans, and is mainly performed by serological tests. This requires blood sampling by veterinarians or technicians according to Colombian laws. The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of conjunctival swabs in the molecular detection of Leishmania in dogs from the municipality of Ovejas, Sucre. METHODS: The present study was cross-sectional and descriptive. The collection source of samples and information was primary. Blood samples and conjunctival swabs from 121 dogs were analysed by PCR-ITS1 to detect Leishmania spp. Positive samples were used to amplify a conserved region of the Leishmania infantum kinetoplast minicircle. Performance of both sample types was calculated by proportion of positive samples of each type and the degree of agreement between them was determined by Cohen's kappa (κ) agreement index. RESULTS: Leishmania infection was detected in 17.4% (21/121) of blood samples and in 16.5% (20/121) of conjunctival swabs. In total, 28.1% (34/121) of the canines were infected, of which 11.8% (4/34) were infected with L. infantum in the conjunctival swabs and 5.9 % (2/34) in the blood samples. The agreement between blood and conjunctiva was medium (κ = 0.207) by PCR-ITS1 amplification. INTERPRETATION CONCLUSION: The use of conjunctival swab as a non-invasive sample could be used as an alternative method for surveillance of canine leishmaniasis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38381044/