Author, Donkey, Bureaucrats, Administrators
53,803
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
no edit summary
6) Check for adults (ELISA) 4-6months after adulticide, and before start of each subsequent mosquito season.
6) Check for adults (ELISA) 4-6months after adulticide, and before start of each subsequent mosquito season.
==Cat==
*A canine parasite - see under Dog Nematodes for life-cycle etc.
*Cats are abnormal hosts, and so ''D. immitis'' is not very infective for cats.
*Nevertheless, feline infection is common (up to 25%) in some heavily endemic areas.
*But only small numbers of adult worms (1-3) establish.
*The prepatent period is longer (approximately 8months) than in the dog.
*Few, if any, microfilariae are produced (<20% of cases positive).
*The life-span of the worm is shorter (2-3years).
*However: one dead adult → acute pulmonary crisis (thromboembolism).
=== Feline Heartworm Disease ===
*Lung pathology similar to dog, but little heart pathology.
*Coughing starts 4-6months post-infection.
*Antibody-detection ELISA used for diagnosis, but false positives occur (antigen ELISA cannot be used as antigen rarely expressed in cats).
*There is no licensed adulticidal therapy, and treatment may be fatal for the cat as well as the worm.
*Ivermectin or selamectin can be used for prevention.
[[Category:Filarioidea]]
[[Category:Filarioidea]]
[[Category:Dog_Nematodes]]
[[Category:Dog_Nematodes]]
[[Category:Cat_Nematodes]]