What is Heartworm Disease?
Heartworm disease, also called dirofilariasis, is a parasite that several species (dog,cat,horse) can contract if they are bitten by a mosquito that contain the worm larvae.
What are the Clinical Symptoms?
Symptoms depend on the life cycle of the larva. Many dogs and cats do not show any clinical signs for months and possibly years after the initial infection. When they finally show up, symptoms will usually be cough, weight loss, fever and breathing problems. At a later stage, the animal is usually less active because of decrease cardiac output.
How is it Diagnosed?
A complete blood count is performed along with a thoracic x-rays and a specific antigen tests (Elisa). In veterinary clinics, there are test that give the results in less than 10 minutes. It is very important to complete all the tests rapidly in order to know the severity of the disease.
How is it Treated?
Usually, the first treatment consists of a medication (adulticidal therapy) that eliminates all the mature worms. It is followed with a rest period of 4-6 weeks to help with recovery. Finally, another medication (microfilaricidal therapy) will be given to eliminate the worms in bloodstream.
How Can it be Prevented?
In April or May of each year, ask your vet to do a heartworm test. If the result is negative, then a prevention treatment should be given monthly from June to November. Your choice of treatment will usually depend on 3 things:
- The way the medication is administered (flavour tablets or drops on the animal skin)
- The range of action of the medication. Many treatments will also prevent fleas and intestinal parasites.
- Prices
What are the Recommended Products?
Many products are available on the market but these products are usually considered to be good prevention treatments:
- Advantage Multi
- Revolution (Pfizer)
- Sentinel (Novartis)
- Interceptor (Novartis)
