title: Efficacy of a slow-release imidacloprid (10%)/flumethrin (4.5%) collar for the prevention of canine leishmaniosis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The efficacy of a slow-release insecticidal and repellent collar containing 10% imidacloprid and 4.5% flumethrin (Seresto, Bayer Animal Health) in preventing Leishmania infantum infection was evaluated in a large population of dogs living in a hyper-endemic area of Sicily (Italy).
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 219 dogs, negative for L. infantum were enrolled in a multicentre, controlled study. Dogs were divided into two homogeneous groups, defined as G1 (n = 102) and G2 (n = 117). Before the start of the sand fly season, dogs in G1 were treated with the collar while animals in G2 were left untreated, serving as negative controls. Dogs were serially sampled on day D90, D180, D210 and D300 in order to assess Leishmania infection by IFAT, PCR on skin (D210-D300) and bone marrow (D300) and cytology on bone marrow aspirate (D300).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three dogs (2.9%) in G1 and 41 (40.2%) in G2 became positive for L. infantum in at least one of the diagnostic tests employed in the study. The number of seropositive dogs in G2 increased in the course of the study from 15 (D90) to 41 (D300), with some of them also positive in other diagnostic tests. Eight (19.6%) of the seropositive dogs in G2 showed an increase in antibody titers ranging from 1:160 to 1:1,280. At the last follow-up, some of dogs in G2 displayed overt clinical signs suggestive of leishmaniosis. The mean incidence density rate at the final follow-up was 4.0% for G1 and 60.7% for G2, leading to a mean efficacy of the collar in protecting dogs at both sites of 93.4%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The slow-release collar tested in this study was shown to be safe and highly effective in preventing L. infantum infection in a large population of dogs. Protection conferred by a single collar (up to eight months) spanned an entire sand fly season in a hyper-endemic area of southern Italy. The regular use of collars, at least during the sand fly season, may represent a reliable and sustainable strategy for the prevention of leishmaniosis in dogs living in or travelling to an endemic area.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Università degli Studi di Messina, Polo Universitario Annunziata, 98168 Messina, Italy. ebrianti@unime.it.
authors.forename: Emanuele
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Brianti
authors.forename: Gabriella
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gaglio
authors.forename: Ettore
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Napoli
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Falsone
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Prudente
authors.forename: Fabrizio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Solari Basano
authors.forename: Maria S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Latrofa
authors.forename: Viviana D
authors.initials: VD
authors.lastname: Tarallo
authors.forename: Filipe
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Dantas-Torres
authors.forename: Gioia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Capelli
authors.forename: Dorothee
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Stanneck
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Giannetto
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Otranto
mesh_terms: D000287:Administration, Topical; D000818:Animals; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004285:Dogs; D007093:Imidazoles / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007306:Insecticides / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology; D018314:Leishmania infantum; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000662:veterinary*; D000073943:Neonicotinoids; D009574:Nitro Compounds / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011576:Psychodidae / Q000187:drug effects; D011722:Pyrethrins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D007093:Imidazoles; D007306:Insecticides; D000073943:Neonicotinoids; D009574:Nitro Compounds; D011722:Pyrethrins; C041392:flumethrin; C082359:imidacloprid