ASPETTI CLINICO-PATOLOGICI IN OTTO CANI CON INFEZIONE DA ANGIOSTRONGYLUS VASORUM IN SUD ITALIA

Angiostrongylus vasorum has been recently reported in central and southern Italy. Although a wide range of clinical signs have been described in association with A. vasorum, respiratory disease and haemorrhagic diatheses predominate. The aim of the present study is to report the different clinical presentations, laboratory and imaging findings of 8 cases of angiostrongilosis. Diagnosis was made by means of larval morphological identification; faecal samples were analysed by the Baermann test and direct microscopic observation. Different treatment protocols were used, and animals were weekly monitored by larval detection in faecal samples. The reported cases showed different clinical presentations associated with the presence of A. vasorum in dogs, and suggest that angiostrongylosis should be considered as a possible etiological cause of several clinical conditions. Although A. vasorum can be fatal, an early diagnosis and appropriate treatment may lead to a complete clinical resolution, as it was in the cases described herein