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J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus 2021 Mar-Apr;58(2):136. Epub 2021 Mar 1.

Ann Parasitol 2021 ;67(1):129-132

Witold Stefański Institute of Parasitology PAS, ul. Twarda 51/55, 00-818 Warsaw, Poland.

Dirofilariosis, caused by nematodes Dirofilaria repens, is a parasitosis of wild and domestic carnivores. Nematodes D. repens locate in the subcutaneous and intramuscular tissue. Read More

Emerg Infect Dis 2021 Jun;27(6):1701-1704

Human subcutaneous dirofilariasis is an emerging mosquitoborne zoonosis. A traveler returning to Germany from India experienced Dirofilaria infection with concomitant microfilaremia. Molecular analysis indicated Dirofilaria repens nematodes of an Asian genotype. Read More

Indian J Dermatol Venereol Leprol 2021 May-Jun;87(3):390-392

Department of Dermatology, Fattouma Bourguiba University Hospital, Monastir, Tunisia.

J Trop Med 2021 10;2021:6643226. Epub 2021 Apr 10.

Department of Zoology and Environmental Management, Faculty of Science, University of Kelaniya, Dalugama, Kelaniya 11600, Sri Lanka.

The present study was conducted to determine the prevalence of filariasis causing parasites in adult mosquitoes and vector mosquito larval breeding in four Medical Officer of Health (MOH) areas in Gampaha district, Sri Lanka. Adult female mosquitoes at their resting places were collected using a prokopack aspirator operated twice a day from 7.00 am to 8. Read More

Emerg Infect Dis 2021 May;27(5):1532-1534

Eosinophilic meningitis caused by human diroflarial infection is rare. We report a case of eosinophilic meningitis and concomitant intraocular dirofilarial infection in India. Sequencing of the mitochondrial genome identified the worm as Dirofilaria sp. Read More

Microb Pathog 2021 Jun 20;155:104884. Epub 2021 Apr 20.

Centro de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados en Salud Animal, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Km 15.5 Carretera Panamericana Toluca-Atlacomulco, Toluca, Estado de México, C.P. 50200, México.

Dogs are a reservoir for Chagas disease, caused by Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi), and other companion vector-borne diseases, including ehrlichiosis (Ehrlichia canis and Ehrlichia ewingii), anaplasmosis (Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Anaplasma platys), dirofilariasis (Dirofilaria immitis) and Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi). This study has two key objectives: 1) to determine seroreactivity against T. Read More

J Nematol 2021 19;53. Epub 2021 Feb 19.

Infectious Disease Research Center, Birjand University of Medical Sciences, Birjand, Iran.

Knowledge of the vectors of dirofilariasis in the world beside the treatment of infected dog is crucial to establish mosquito vector-based control programs. The current systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted on published studies, documenting the prevalence of infected/infective mosquitoes from field surveys and laboratory experiments under controlled conditions. Articles up through 2019 from Scopus, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Google Scholar were screened systematically. Read More

Am J Trop Med Hyg 2021 Apr 12. Epub 2021 Apr 12.

3Center for Nanoscience and Molecular Medicine, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Center, Amrita University, Cochin, Kerala 682041, India.

We tried to determine the epidemiology and species of human dirofilariasis observed at two tertiary care hospitals in Kerala. We searched the hospital database to identify cases of dirofilariosis from January 2005 to March 2020. Along with human isolates, one dog Dirofilaria isolate was also subjected to PCR and sequencing of pan filarial primers cytochrome oxidase subunits 1 and 12S rDNA. Read More

Parasite 2021 2;28:30. Epub 2021 Apr 2.

College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, 14850 NY, USA.

NexGard Combo is a novel topical endectoparasiticide formulation for cats combining the insecticide/acaricide esafoxolaner, the nematodicide eprinomectin and the cestodicide praziquantel. The efficacy of this novel formulation for the prevention of heartworm disease in cats was tested in two experimental studies using an induced infection model and a randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled study design, and two USA isolates of Dirofilaria immitis. In each study, 20 naïve cats were each inoculated sub-cutaneously with 100 third-stage larvae of D. Read More

J Vet Diagn Invest 2021 May 18;33(3):572-576. Epub 2021 Mar 18.

Département des Sciences Cliniques des animaux de compagnie et de sport, École nationale vétérinaire de Toulouse, Université de Toulouse, INSERM, ENVT, UPS, Toulouse, France.

causes life-threatening heart disease in dogs, thus screening of dog populations is important. Lens-free technology (LFT) is a low-cost imaging technique based on light diffraction that allows computerized recognition of small objects in holographic images. We evaluated an algorithm capable of recognizing microfilariae in canine whole blood using the LFT. Read More

Ter Arkh 2020 Dec 26;92(11):62-64. Epub 2020 Dec 26.

Rostov State Medical University.

The paper presents the case of the right-sided inguinal inflammation of a lymph node as a result of invasion of Dirofilaria repens, the parasitic pathogen of subcutaneous dirofilariasis in animals of the canine family. The diagnosis was verified on the basis of the parallel application of morphological studies of cross sections of the nematode in histological samples and the molecular biological method polymerase chain reaction of scrapings of histological material. The localization of this helminth inside the cavities of the human body is extremely rare. Read More

Vet Radiol Ultrasound 2021 May 1;62(3):299-308. Epub 2021 Feb 1.

Telemedicine Specialists, IDEXX Laboratories Inc, Westbrook, Maine, USA.

Aberrant Dirofilaria immitis migrans is a rare cause of neurologic signs in dogs, however, published studies describing the computed tomographic (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) characteristics of this problem are currently lacking. The objective of this retrospective case series study was to describe the clinical and imaging findings for four adult dogs with verminous myelopathy due to aberrant Dirofilaria immitis migrans within the cervical subarachnoid space. All dogs were toy breeds, were heartworm antigen positive, had neurologic signs (ranging from cervical hyperesthesia to tetraparesis), and similar MRI findings. Read More

Pathogens 2021 Jan 22;10(2). Epub 2021 Jan 22.

Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (LADDL), Pathobiological Sciences Department, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA.

Here we describe an unusual and severe mixed parasitic infection in a cat that died during routine surgery. Gastric sp., cardiac , and intestinal , , sp. Read More

Sci Rep 2021 Jan 13;11(1):1068. Epub 2021 Jan 13.

Department of Eco-Epidemiology of Parasitic Diseases, Institute of Developmental Biology and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 1 Miecznikowa Street, 02-096, Warsaw, Poland.

Dirofilariasis is a fast-spreading disease of dogs and humans in Europe. We investigated whether Dirofilaria spp. have spread northwards in Europe, invading the Baltic countries. Read More

Parasitol Res 2021 Feb 8;120(2):739-742. Epub 2021 Jan 8.

Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Veterinary Research Institute, Hudcova 296/70, 621 00, Brno, Czech Republic.

Dirofilaria repens and Dirofilaria immitis are the most common filarial species affecting humans in Europe. Dirofilaria repens causes subcutaneous or ocular infection, whereas D. immitis is responsible mainly for the pulmonary form. Read More

Parasitol Res 2021 Feb 6;120(2):547-552. Epub 2021 Jan 6.

Institute of Parasitology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Hlinkova 3, 040 01, Košice, Slovakia.

The known data resulting from individual surveys of canine dirofilariosis point to the great differences in the epidemiological situation among countries where Dirofilaria parasites emerged approximately at the same time. In this regard, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, neighboring countries situated in Central Europe, could serve as an illustrative example of such a situation. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of canine dirofilariosis in both countries and to discuss the reasons for potential differences shown. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2021 Jan 6;14(1):10. Epub 2021 Jan 6.

IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., Westbrook, ME, USA.

Background: Dogs in the US are commonly infected with vector-borne pathogens, including heartworm and tick-borne disease agents. The geographic distribution of both arthropod vectors and the pathogens they transmit continues to expand.

Methods: To describe the current geographic distribution and prevalence of antigen of Dirofilaria immitis and antibody to Borrelia burgdorferi, Ehrlichia spp. Read More

Vet Parasitol 2021 Jan 10;289:109302. Epub 2020 Dec 10.

Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, USA; Department of Infectious Diseases, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA. Electronic address:

Antigen enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay tests are widely used for the diagnosis of heartworm infection in dogs. While commercially-available heartworm antigen tests have high sensitivity and specificity, false-negative test results can occur in dogs with low worm burdens, female-only infections, or prior to patency. The use of immune complex dissociation (ICD) methods have demonstrated increased sensitivity in the detection of Dirofilaria immitis antigens and the reversal of false-negative antigen results. Read More

IDCases 2021 16;23:e01010. Epub 2020 Nov 16.

Khoja Akhmet Yassawi International Kazakh-Turkish University, Turkestan, Kazakhstan.

D. repens is the causative agent of subcutaneous dirofilariasis in canine animals. In recent years, human invasion by this vector-borne helminthiasis has been recorded in many countries with temperate climate, but the localization of this helminth in the cavities of the human body is extremely rare. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2020 Dec 9;13(1):614. Epub 2020 Dec 9.

Institute of Parasitology, McGill University, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Montreal, H9X3V9, Canada.

Background: Current measures for the prevention of dirofilariasis, caused by the dog heartworm, Dirofilaria immitis, rely on macrocyclic lactones, but evidence of drug-resistant isolates has called for alternative approaches to disease intervention. As microfilariae are known to be in a state of developmental arrest in their mammalian host and then undergo two molts once inside the arthropod, the aim of this study was to look at the developmental regulation of D. immitis microfilariae that occurs in their arthropod host using in vitro approaches and to investigate the role of the ecdysone signaling system in this development regulation. Read More

Clin Microbiol Infect 2020 Dec 3. Epub 2020 Dec 3.

Centre for Nanosciences and Molecular Medicine, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Ponekara, Kerala, India.

Parasitol Res 2021 Jan 17;120(1):359-364. Epub 2020 Nov 17.

Mammal Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, Stoczek 1, 17-230, Białowieża, Poland.

We present the first case of dirofilariasis in a dog from Białowieża village located in the primeval European forest-Białowieża Primeval Forest (NE Poland). Molecular analysis of adult nematode specimens isolated from subcutaneous tissue confirmed the infection with Dirofilaria repens. An adult male dog has not travelled out of the Białowieża village for at least five years; therefore, we assume this is the autochthonous case of the disease. Read More

Sud Med Ekspert 2020 ;63(6):51-56

Volgograd State Medical University, Volgograd, Russia.

The Aim Of The Study: Is to draw the attention of forensic experts and histologists to the problem of infectious diseases occurring with the formation of granulomas. Was reviewed the general patterns of granulomatous diseases, as well as the peculiarities of pathomorphosis in helminthiasis (schistosomiasis, paragonimiasis, onchocerciasis, dirofilariasis, ascariasis, cysticercosis), mycoses (cryptococcosis, chromomycosis, coccidioidosis) and protozoal diseases, toxosomes. The article includes photomicrographs from the authors' personal archive, including those collected during their work in African countries Text is based on scientific data from articles, monographs, educational literature, personal experience and cases of forensic medical practice. Read More

J Med Entomol 2021 03;58(2):906-912

Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kafkas University Kars, Turkey.

Dirofilaria immitis (Leidy, 1856) and Dirofilaria repens (Railliet & Henry, 1911) are mosquito-borne filarial nematodes that primarily affect dogs, causing heartworm disease and subcutaneous dirofilariosis. The canine heartworm is reported in different provinces in Turkey. However, studies about the transmitting mosquito species are limited. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2020 Nov 4;13(1):548. Epub 2020 Nov 4.

Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), Tehran, Iran.

Background: Blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae) are known as effective vectors of human and animal pathogens, worldwide. We have already indicated that some individuals in the Simulium turgaicum complex are annoying pests of humans and livestock in the Aras River Basin, Iran. However, there is no evidence of host preference and their possible vectorial role in the region. Read More

Front Vet Sci 2020 29;7:571. Epub 2020 Sep 29.

Group of Animal and Human Dirofilariasis, Faculty of Pharmacy, Campus Miguel Unamuno, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain.

Dirofilariasis is a vector-borne zoonotic disease caused mainly by and that affect dogs and humans all over the world. Serbia is considered an endemic country to both forms of dirofilariasis, although most of the population is concentrated in the north of the country. The aims of this study were to show the prevalence of and in dogs and the seroprevalence in humans compared to previous studies in Northern Serbia. Read More

Indian J Ophthalmol 2020 Nov;68(11):2523

Bedge, Kulkarni & Pande, Pathology Laboratory, Nagpur, India.

One Health 2020 Dec 21;10:100153. Epub 2020 Jul 21.

Department for Bacteriology and Parasitology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, Savska cesta 143, 10 000 Zagreb, Croatia.

Introduction: Human dirofilariasis is a disease historically linked to the Mediterranean area. For the last few decades, however, nematodes have been spreading, both in terms of prevalence and the geographical expansion in non-endemic areas. Currently, cases of human dirofilariasis are recorded in more than 40 countries worldwide. Read More

J Fr Ophtalmol 2020 Dec 19;43(10):e365-e368. Epub 2020 Oct 19.

Department B, Institut Hédi Raies d'ophthalmologie de Tunis, boulevard 9 avril 1938, 1007 Tunis, Tunisia; Oculogenetic laboratory LR14SP01, Institut Hedi Raies d'ophthalmologie de Tunis, Boulevard 9 avril 1938, 1007 Tunis, Tunisia; Faculté de médecine de Tunis, université Tunis-El Manar, rue Djebal Lakhdar, 1006 Tunis, Tunisia.