Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Best skin biopsy sites and tests to detect Leishmania in dogs
By Xavier, Sílvio Coura et al.·Published in BMC veterinary research·2006·Departamento de Clí·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Comparison of paraffin-embedded skin biopsies from different anatomical regions as sampling methods for detection of Leishmania infection in dogs using histological, immunohistochemical and PCR methods.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study found that skin biopsies from different areas of a dog's body can help detect Leishmania infection, which can cause serious health issues. The most effective method was a test called PCR, especially when samples were taken from the ears and nose. While other methods like immunohistochemistry (IHC) and histology (HE) were also used, they were less reliable. This means that if your dog shows signs of Leishmania, such as skin lesions or other symptoms, a biopsy from the ear could be the best way to confirm the infection.
People also search for: dog skin biopsy Leishmania · dog ear biopsy infection · symptoms of Leishmania in dogs
Abstract
BACKGROUND: We compared skin biopsy samples from different anatomical regions for detecting Leishmania in dogs, using histological (HE), immunohistochemical (IHC) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques. RESULTS: The sensitivity was 82.8 percent for PCR, 62.1 percent for IHC and 44.8 percent for HE. These methods do not appear to depend on the clinical status of the animal or the anatomical source of the skin sample; there is no "best region" for any method. However, PCR was more effective than IHC and HE for ear and nose skin samples whereas IHC was better than HE for nose samples. There was weak agreement between PCR and HE for all tissue samples; good agreement between PCR and IHC for ear and abdomen samples, and weak agreement for nose; and optimal agreement between IHC and HE for ear and abdomen and good agreement for nose samples. CONCLUSION: The PCR on ear skin could be the best procedure for diagnosing canine visceral leishmaniasis. The good agreement between PCR and IHC indicates that IHC can be used as an alternative method. Finally, tissue samples from ears, nose and abdomen, particularly ears and nose, are potentially useful for diagnosing canine visceral leishmaniasis independently of the animal's clinical status.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16762067/