Elimination of Dirofilaria immitis Infection in Dogs, Linosa Island, Italy, 2020–2022

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Emerg Infect Dis
• Personal Author:
  Brianti, Emanuele ; Napoli, Ettore ; De Benedetto, Giovanni ; Venco, Luigi ; Mendoza-Roldan, Jairo Alfonso ; Basile, Angelo ; Bezerra-Santos, Marcos Antônio ; Drake, Jason ; Schaper, Roland ; Otranto, Domenico
• Description:
  On Linosa Island, Italy, Dirofilaria immitis infection has been hyperendemic in dogs and seroprevalent among islanders. In 2020, we implemented a heartworm disease elimination program on Linosa Island. Of 54 dogs tested for D. immitis antigen and microfilariae, 28 had positive results and received treatment with oral doxycycline twice daily for 4 weeks plus topical imidacloprid/moxidectin monthly for 12 months. The 26 dogs with negative results received monthly topical imidacloprid/moxidectin as preventive. During month 1, the number of microfilaremic dogs was reduced by 76.5%. From month 2 on, all animals were microfilariae negative, and during months 3 to 9, the number of antigen-positive dogs decreased progressively. Treatment of positive dogs coupled with chemoprophylaxis for noninfected dogs was effective, protecting them from new infections. The elimination program reduced the risk for human infection, representing a One Health paradigm. Monitoring and chemoprophylaxis are advocated to maintain the status of heartworm disease-free area.
• Subjects:
  Animals Dirofilaria Immitis Dirofilariasis Dog Dog Diseases Dogs Drug Therapy, Combination Elimination Elimination Of Dirofilaria Immitis Infection In Dogs, Linosa Island, Italy, 2020–2022 Heartworm Disease Italy Microfilariae Moxidectin Parasites Research Soft-kill Treatment Vector-borne Infections

  More +
• Source:
  Emerg Infect Dis. 2023; 29(8):1559-1565
• Pubmed ID:
  37486185
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC10370836
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Volume:
  29
• Issue:
  8
• Collection(s):
  Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:94ab8f1f19e510e7db823729a4bb8da835021cd0d1c7f3607296dd7b4a4b830a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/132609/cdc_132609_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.03 MB ]