Leishmaniasis and Chagas' disease were surveyed by indirect immunofluorescence with sera from 331 dogs from Uberlândia and Coromandel, two counties in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Leishmania amazonensis and Trypanosoma cruzi antigens were employed. In Uberlândia county, 230 sera were studied, of which 200 were from urban areas and 30 rural: 4.5% of urban samples and 6.6% of rural were positive for L. amazonensis antigen. Of 89 sera from Coromandel, 5.6% were positive for the same test to L. amazonensis antigen. Twelve additional canine sera were obtained from the Veterinary Hospital at the Federal University in Uberlândia, all of which with a pending diagnosis of leishmaniasis: of these, one had a positive immune test to L. amazonensis and another to T. cruzi antigens. The results suggest regional urbanization of both leishmaniasis and Chagas' disease in the canine populations of both communities.
Leishmaniasis; Chagas' Disease; Dogs; Epidemiology; Zoonosis
