Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Heartworm infection rates in dogs at Chiang Mai University hospital
By Boonyapakorn, Chaovalit et al.·Published in The Southeast Asian journal of tropical medicine and public health·2008·Small Animal Clinic·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: The epidemiology of Dirofilaria immitis infection in outpatient dogs at Chiang Mai University Small Animal Hospital, Thailand.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study of 589 dogs at a veterinary hospital in Thailand found that about 18% were infected with heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis), a serious condition that can lead to severe health issues. Younger dogs under 2 years had a lower infection rate of 6.4%, while older dogs showed a much higher rate of 41.5%. Dogs that lived outdoors were more likely to be infected compared to those kept indoors. The research also indicated that dogs receiving heartworm prevention medication had significantly lower infection rates. Overall, it appears that dogs in this region can contract heartworm within about two years if not protected.
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Abstract
Five hundred eighty-nine dog blood samples from the small animal hospital of Chiang Mai University were examined for Dirofilaria immitis prevalence using a microhematocrit tube technique for microfilaria detection. In parallel, a once a month follow-up study on 36 D. immitis negative dogs was conducted to detect the time of acquiring infection in each animal. The diagnostic criteria for the incidence study was based on microfilaria detection or on positive findings against D. immitis antigen using the Witness commercial kit. The estimated prevalence was 18.2% (15-21%; 95% CI). There was no statistical difference between male and female infection rates. The age-specific prevalence of dogs under 2 years old was 6.4%, which was lower than the 2-4 year old group and all the other age groups at a 95% confidence level. In older dogs the prevalence reached 41.5%. Most of the dogs housed outdoors had a statistically higher infection rate than the dogs housed indoors (chi-square = 9.662, 1 df, p = 0.002). Only 109 dogs received chemoprophylaxis resulting in a significantly lower infection rate than in the non-heartworm prevention dogs (chi-square =14.424, 1 df, p = 0.000). The overall incidence density and the incidence during the rainy, cool and hot seasons were 5.2, 6.9, 3.5, and 2.7 animals per 100 animal-months, respectively. The incidence rate ratio between wet/dry, rainy/cool, rainy/summer, and cool/hot seasons were 2.18, 1.98, 2.59 and 1.30, respectively. The 95% confidence interval revealed no difference among seasons. In conclusion, dogs in D. immitis endemic northern Thailand contract infection in about 2 years.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18567441/