title: 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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA.
authors.forename: Kelly E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.forename: Susan E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Little
authors.forename: Eileen M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Joe
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hostetler
authors.forename: Roger J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Panciera
authors.forename: Sidney A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Ewing
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000981:Antiprotozoal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016782:Apicomplexa / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001179:Arthropod Vectors; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000469:parasitology; D004285:Dogs; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011529:Protozoan Infections, Animal / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000469:parasitology
chemical_list: D000981:Antiprotozoal Agents