Treatment of Hepatozoon americanum infection: review of the literature and experimental evaluation of efficacy.

Abstract

There is no labeled treatment for dogs with American canine hepatozoonosis (ACH), but the drug therapies discussed in this article, although not rapidly curative, may be successful in alleviating acute clinical signs, prolonging life, reducing the number of clinical relapses, and enhancing quality of life. This article also describes a pilot trial conducted to assess the efficacy of a novel treatment approach with ponazuril as a stand-alone parasiticide administered for 4 weeks without follow-up decoquinate treatment. Although extended ponazuril treatment in combination with NSAID administration did ameliorate acute clinical signs associated with ACH, the parasite was not completely cleared with this treatment protocol alone. Long-term decoquinate therapy remains a critical component of successful treatment of ACH.