Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cat with natural Leishmania infantum chagasi infection in São Paulo
By Savani, Elisa San Martin Mouriz et al.·Published in Veterinary parasitology·2004·Centro de Controle de Zoonoses do Municí, Brazil·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: The first record in the Americas of an autochthonous case of Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi in a domestic cat (Felix catus) from Cotia County, São Paulo State, Brazil.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A domestic cat in Brazil was found to have a skin infection caused by Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi, a parasite that can affect both humans and animals. The cat had a noticeable nodular lesion on its nose, which led to further testing. While no parasites were found in the liver or spleen, DNA testing confirmed the presence of the parasite. This case is significant because it suggests that cats can carry and transmit this disease in areas where it hasn't been seen before, raising concerns for pet owners in those regions.
People also search for: cat skin infection Leishmania · cat nose lesion · Leishmania treatment for cats · signs of Leishmania in cats · cat disease transmission to humans
Abstract
A case of feline cutaneous leishmaniasis is reported in a domestic cat (Felis catus) as an apparently natural infection in a non-endemic area. Amastigotes were seem in smears of a nodular lesion on the cat's nose. No parasite could be seen in cytological preparations of liver or spleen but DNA obtained from a sample of the spleen produced the expected fragment in a Leishmania specific rDNA based PCR assay. The PCR product, a 520 bp fragment, was sequenced and the nucleotide sequence was identical to that of Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum chagasi. These results are surprising since no autochthonous human or canine cases of visceral leishmaniasis have ever been reported from this region. This case suggests that natural transmission of this disease is occurring in this area, and that cats could act as a reservoir of L. (L.) infantum chagasi.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15041097/