Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Blood clotting tests in dogs with mild Babesia rossi infection
By Liebenberg, C et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2013·Department of Companion Animal Clinical Studies·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Hemostatic abnormalities in uncomplicated babesiosis (Babesia rossi) in dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 19 dogs with uncomplicated babesiosis (a tick-borne disease) were studied to see if they showed any signs of bleeding despite having very low platelet counts. Surprisingly, these dogs did not exhibit any clinical signs of bleeding, and their blood clotting tests were mostly normal. This suggests that even with severe drops in platelets, these dogs can maintain normal blood clotting ability. The findings indicate that while the dogs had low platelet counts, they were not at risk for bleeding complications.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Babesiosis in dogs is associated with severe thrombocytopenia; yet infected dogs rarely show clinical signs of hemorrhage. HYPOTHESIS: Dogs with uncomplicated babesiosis have normal hemostatic capacity despite severe thrombocytopenia. ANIMALS: Nineteen client-owned dogs with uncomplicated babesiosis; 10 healthy controls. METHODS: A prospective, cross-sectional, observational study. Thromboelastography (TEG), prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), fibrinogen, D-dimers, and antithrombin (AT) measured in both groups. Statistical significance set at P < .01. RESULTS: Babesiosis group hematocrit and platelet count significantly lower than controls (0.29 versus 0.50 L/L; P < .001 and 20.0 versus 374.5 × 10(9)/L; P < .001, respectively). Except for K, no significant difference in TEG variables between groups. Hemostatic variables for babesiosis group versus controls (mean ± SD); R: 5.9 ± 1.8 versus 4.6 ± 0.9 min (P = .048); K: 2.8 ± 1.1 versus 1.9 ± 0.6 min (P = .003); angle: 55.5 ± 11.7 versus 62.2 ± 4.1 degrees (P = .036); MA: 48.4 ± 9.7 versus 57.2 ± 5.2 mm (P = 0.013); G: 5.1 ± 1.9 versus 6.9 ± 1.5 dyn/cm(2) (P = .019); LY30 (median, range): 0 (0-5.7) versus 0.6% (0-6.1) (P = .152); and LY60: 0 (0-8.8) versus 3.1% (0-13.1) (P = .012). AT activity significantly lower (105.2 ± 16.5 versus 127.8 ± 15.4%; P = .001). Fibrinogen concentration significantly higher in babesiosis group (5.7 ± 1.3 versus. 3.0 ± 0.7 g/L; P < .001). CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Despite severe thrombocytopenia, dogs with uncomplicated babesiosis did not have clinical signs of hemorrhage and TEG variables were normal, which could indicate a normocoagulable state.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23194149/