Blood test and X-ray findings in dogs with parvovirus enteritis

Abstract

The article presents parvovirus infection in dogs, which is quite common in Ukraine and other European countries. The aim of the work was to analyze hematological parameters and clinical signs in dogs with parvovirus, in order to determine the relationship between immunological changes and the clinical course of the disease to improve diagnosis and treatment. The study was conducted on 20 dogs with intestinal, cardiac, and mixed forms of parvovirus infection, with the involvement of 10 clinically healthy dogs as a control group. Hematological blood parameters were determined using an automatic hematological analyzer BC-2800Vet Mindray, designed to determine 18 parameters with leukocyte differentiation using two independent measurement principles: the Coulter method and the colorimetric method. Reagents from PZ CORMAY S.A. (Poland) were used for the studies. Diagnostic studies aimed at confirming parvovirus enteritis were performed using VetExpert rapid tests. The most characteristic diagnostic clinical signs of parvovirus enteritis are the development of diarrhea with a sharp unpleasant odor of gastric juice and pieces of undigested food, often with impurities of blood and mucus. X-ray changes in parvovirus enteritis in dogs are manifested by the expansion of intestinal loops, their filling with gases and liquid, thickening of the intestinal wall, heart enlargement, development of dilated cardiomyopathy in cardiac or mixed forms. In all dogs with parvovirus enteritis, regardless of the clinical manifestation of the disease, characteristic changes in the blood were found – slight leukocytosis, erythropenia, segmented neutrophilia and lymphocytopenia and a significant (P < 0.001) increase in the level of alkaline phosphatase with a simultaneous significant (P < 0.05 – P < 0.001) increase in the content of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase. At the same time, the de Ritis coefficient is in the range from 1.16 to 1.51. The mixed form of the disease is associated with a more intensive development of multiorgan dysfunction. This is confirmed by a significant (P < 0.05) decrease in the indicators of erythrocyte hematopoiesis (hemoglobin and hematocrit levels), total protein and lymphocytopenia. Increased concentrations of creatinine, alkaline phosphatase, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were recorded, indicating the involvement of the liver and kidneys in the pathological process. Studies confirm the relationship between the clinical forms of parvovirus in dogs and changes in hematological and biochemical blood parameters, which reflect the characteristic features of the body's immune response to infection. The data obtained can be used as additional, although nonspecific, diagnostic markers that contribute to a more accurate identification of various forms of parvovirus enteritis in dogs.