CANINE LEPTOSPIROSIS: A PERSPECTIVE ON RECENT TRENDS |
PEER REVIEWED
CANINE LEPTOSPIROSIS A Perspective on Recent Trends
Kenneth R. Harkin, DVM, Diplomate ACVIM (Small Animal Internal Medicine)
From prevalence to risk factors to diagnosis and therapy, this article explores the latest information on this zoonotic disease.
L
eptospirosis has been described as a re-emerging disease in both dogs and humans.1,2 Whether or not a true increase in the incidence of canine leptospi-
rosis (Figure 1) has occurred over the past 2 decades is unclear. Increased awareness and vigilance, partly spurred by educational campaigns, have likely increased the number of diagnosed cases. Still, several studies have suggested a temporal trend that is consistent with a re-emergence of lep- tospirosis.3 In either case, leptospirosis should be recognized as a significant infec-
tious disease in dogs, with variable incidence that is dependent on unpre- dictable short- and long-term weather patterns and influenced by anthro- pogenic factors that may affect exposure of dogs to wildlife vectors.
SEROGROUP PREVALENCE There has been much discussion about the changing face of sero- group prevalence in dogs—from Canicola and Icterohemorrhagiae (1950s to 1970s) to Grippotypho- sa and Pomona (1990s to present day). The reality is that serogroups Grippotyphosa and Pomona were well-described in dogs in reports dating back to 1956.4,5
Similarly,
Birnbaum, et al, did not see any change in serogroup prevalence from 1980 through 1995, with sero- groups Grippotyphosa and Pomo- na predominating.6 Serogroup prevalence more likely
Figure 1. Scanning electron micrograph of Leptospira spe- cies; notice the corkscrew appearance of the bacterium.
July/August 2012 Today's Veterinary Practice 27