Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Regenerative blood response in dogs with Babesia rossi infection
By Seejarim, Chandini et al.·Published in Veterinary clinical pathology·2023·Department of Companion Animal Clinical Studies·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Regenerative response in dogs naturally and experimentally infected with Babesia rossi.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs infected with Babesia rossi, a parasite that causes severe anemia, showed a weak response in producing new red blood cells. Despite having low red blood cell counts, the dogs' bodies didn't effectively regenerate these cells, which is concerning given the severity of their condition. In a few dogs that were experimentally infected, their red blood cell production dropped sharply before improving after treatment. This suggests that the parasite may directly affect the bone marrow's ability to produce blood cells. Treatment is crucial for recovery in these cases.
People also search for: dog Babesia rossi infection symptoms · dog anemia treatment · why is my dog lethargic and pale
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The regenerative response following Babesia rossi infection in dogs is mild, despite severe hemolytic anemia. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to compare the admission absolute reticulocyte count (ARC) and reticulocyte indices in 103 dogs naturally infected with B. rossi with 10 dogs suffering from immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA) and 14 healthy control dogs. The regenerative response was also evaluated in five dogs experimentally infected with B. rossi. METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study of records generated on the ADVIA 2120 hematology analyzer. RESULTS: The median hematocrits (HCT) of the B. rossi and IMHA groups were significantly lower than the control group (p < .001 for both); however, no differences were seen between the B. rossi and IMHA groups. Compared with the control group, the median ARC was significantly higher in the B. rossi (p = .006) and IMHA (p = .019) groups but significantly lower in the B. rossi group than the IMHA group (p = .041). In the experimentally infected dogs, there was a sudden decrease in the ARC approximately 48 h after the detection of peripheral parasitemia, which was followed by an increase after treatment. Reticulocytes of naturally infected B. rossi dogs were larger, with more variation in cellular volume. The reticulocytes of the experimentally infected dogs decreased in size with decreasing hemoglobin concentrations as the study progressed. CONCLUSIONS: The regenerative response in dogs naturally infected with B. rossi is inadequate, given the severity of the anemia observed, and it might be a result of direct suppressive action by the parasite or host response on the bone marrow.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37638541/