Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Intestinal parasites linked to symptoms in dogs with visceral
By Severino, Allan de Jesus Mendonça et al.·Published in Veterinary parasitology·2026·Department of Parasitology, Brazil·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Intestinal parasites in dogs and their association with clinical manifestations of canine visceral leishmaniasis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 47 dogs with canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) were examined for intestinal parasites and their impact on the disease. The most common parasites found were Ancylostoma (hookworms) and Giardia. The study showed that dogs with both CVL and these intestinal parasites often had more severe symptoms and were more likely to suffer from anemia. This suggests that having intestinal worms can worsen the effects of CVL in dogs. Treatment for the parasites could potentially help improve the overall health of affected dogs.
People also search for: dog leishmaniasis symptoms · intestinal parasites in dogs treatment · how to treat anemia in dogs
Abstract
Dogs are companion animals commonly present in spaces shared with humans. However, this close contact may facilitate the transmission of zoonoses, such as canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL). Additionally, dogs are potential hosts of endoparasites that can influence the clinical manifestations of CVL due to immunological interference occurring in parasitic coinfections. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of endoparasites in domestic dogs seropositive for CVL and associate their clinical manifestations with the presence of intestinal helminths. We analyzed 47 seropositive dogs (51.06 % males; 48.9 % females; 80.8 % of undefined breed) that underwent clinical examination, blood count, euthanasia, necropsy, and coproparasitological diagnosis. Dogs were grouped into three clinical categories: low (40.4 %), medium (34.0 %), and severe (25.5 %) based on a modified version of the LeishVet clinical staging system. Coproparasitological results indicated Ancylostoma sp. and Giardia sp. as the most prevalent. Based on necropsy, Ancylostoma sp. and Dipylidium caninum were the most common helminths. Dogs with CVL and intestinal helminths frequently had macrocytic hypochromic (p = 0.0455) and microcytic hypochromic (p = 0.01963) anemia. We also found that Ancylostoma sp. was associated with more severe CVL clinical staging (odds ratio [OR] = 3.3621; 95 % confidence interval [CI] = 2.6413-4.2796) and negatively associated with red blood cell counts (OR = 0.9278; CI = 0.8702-0.9893). We conclude that intestinal helminth infections in dogs with CVL may represent an important aggravating factor for the disease's clinical progression.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41380361/