Abstract

FIGUEREDO, Luciana Aguiar et al. Clinical and hematological findings in Leishmania braziliensis-infected dogs from Pernambuco, Brazil. Rev. Bras. Parasitol. Vet. [online]. 2012, vol.21, n.4, pp.418-420.  Epub Dec 04, 2012. ISSN 1984-2961.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1984-29612012005000010.

Canine cutaneous leishmaniasis by Leishmania braziliensis is a neglected, but widespread disease of dogs in South America. This paper describes clinical and hematological alterations in 17 L. braziliensis-infected dogs from Brazil. The most common hematological findings were thrombocytopenia (82.4%), anemia (70.6%), low packed cell volume (52.9%) and eosinophilia (41.2%). Twelve (70.6%) dogs displayed at least one evident physical alteration; 11 dogs (64.7%) presented skin lesions, four (23.5%) had weight loss and two (11.8%) onychogryphosis. L. braziliensis-infected dogs present clinical and hematological signs often observed in dogs infected by other pathogens. This indicates that veterinarians and public health workers should not consider the presence of non-specific clinical signs as diagnostic criteria for visceral leishmaniasis in dogs living endemic areas to avoid misdiagnosis and subsequent elimination of dogs infected by L. braziliensis.

Keywords : Leishmania braziliensis; dogs; Pernambuco; Brazil.

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