Seroprevalence of Canine Leishmaniasis in Sheltered Dogs in Bu-shehr Province, Southwest of Iran during 2022-2023

Negar  Zare; Abdollah  Najm; Mehdi  Mohebali; Alireza  Sahebani; Mohammad  Rayani; Zabihollah  Zareei; Maryam  Bemana; Afshin  Barazesh

doi:10.18502/ijpa.v20i2.19047

Negar Zare Student Research and Technology Committee, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
Abdollah Najm Bushehr Veterinary Organization, Bushehr, Iran
Mehdi Mohebali Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Alireza Sahebani Student Research and Technology Committee, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
Mohammad Rayani Department of Microbiology & Parasitology, School of Medicine, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
Zabihollah Zareei Department of Medical Parasitology and Mycology, School of Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Maryam Bemana Student Research and Technology Committee, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
Afshin Barazesh Department of Microbiology & Parasitology, School of Medicine, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ijpa.v20i2.19047

Keywords: Visceral leishmaniasis; Sheltered dogs; Iran

Abstract

Background: The Mediterranean form of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is endemic in some regions of Iran and is often seen in children under 10 years old. There is a 90% mortality in patients, if diagnosis and treatment are not done on time. Canids, as reservoirs, play an important role in the spread of the disease.

Methods: Bushehr Province, southern Iran is always mentioned as one of the endemic areas for VL, so for this purpose, as the first study in the region, 112 sheltered dogs in Bushehr City were evaluated for canine leishmaniasis (CanL) using serological Direct Agglutination Test (DAT) as well as detailed clinical examinations.

Results: Out of 112 samples collected, 71.4% of cases had anti-L. infantum IgG antibody titers of 1:80 and higher and therefore considered as seropositive. Furthermore, from the 70 seropositive dogs with antibody titer of 1:320 and higher, 47 (42%) had at least one of the clinical symptoms associated with VL and considered as cases with CanL.

Conclusion: The current seroprevalence situation of dogs in this region, is very noticeable and can be an important alarm for policymakers and health system practitioners. More comprehensive and complementary parasitological studies should be carried out on a number of reservoirs in the region for diagnosis and treatment and to accurately determine the statistics of the disease compared to the obtained seroprevalence status.