Dirofilaria immitis infection in dogs: unusually located and unusual findings.
Clinical, blood, serum biochemistry, and parasitological assessments were performed on four hospitalized dogs, not in good general condition, in a study carried out to determine the prevalence of general parasitic infections. Hematological and biochemical parameters and electrocardiographic recording of the animals were determined during the general clinical examinations. Four dogs were indicated to have been infected with Dirofilaria immitis by using modified Knott's method, and the microfilarial density was determined. Mild to moderate anemia and decrease in sedimentation velocity were established in dogs. Differences in other hematological and biochemical values between the dogs were determined. Right axis deviation was determined in a dog. D. immitis was encountered in the right ventricle, bronchus, and the pericardial sac at the end of the necropsy. On the other hand, in the histopathological examinations, pulmonary adenocarcinoma deriving from bronchial epithelium was identified in a dog, and microfilaria was encountered in bronchial and bronchiolar lumens, interstitium of the lungs, and bile ducts. D. immitis has not been considered in the diagnosis of dogs with pneumonia and tumors. The requirement of parasitological examination with respect to D. immitis in the diagnosis of dogs with tumor or pneumonia has been considered vital.
Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Afyon Kocatepe University, Ahmet Necdet Sezer Kampusu, 03200 Afyonkarahisar, Turkey. feridekircali@aku.edu.tr
Feride Kircali
FK
Sevimli
Esma
E
Kozan
Aziz
A
Bülbül
Fatih Mehmet
FM
Birdane
Mustafa
M
Köse
Alper
A
Sevimli
D000818:Animals; D004183:Dirofilaria immitis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004184:Dirofilariasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D015995:Prevalence