Canine and feline dirofilariosis in a highly enzootic area: First report of feline dirofilariosis in Greece
Open accessAbstract
Dirofilaria immitis (heartworm) is enzootic in many areas of the world and quite prevalent in southern European countries. Although dogs are the main host of the parasite, cats may also be infected, and the prevalence of feline dirofilariosis is associated with the respective prevalence of canine infection in any given area. The aim of the present study was to investigate the proportion of D. immitis infection among dogs and cats that were not under any kind of prophylactic treatment and were living in a heartworm enzootic area. In total, 180 stray animals (148 dogs and 32 cats) living in a shelter in Northern Greece were examined for heartworm infection by the Knott's test and serology (antigen and in cats also antibody detection), and additionally echocardiography in the infected cats. Thirty-seven (25%, CI 18.7-32.5%) of the dogs and 3 (9.4%, CI 3.2-24.2%) of cats were found to be positive, by at least one of the tests applied. In 2 of the infected cats, the parasites were also detected by echocardiography. One of the positive cats died suddenly 1 year after diagnosis and at necropsy two decomposing D. immitis were found in the right ventricle and pulmonary artery. This is the first report of confirmed feline dirofilariosis in Greece. The detected proportion of infection in cats was 38% of the respective canine infection in the examined shelter. The results of the present study underline the high risk of infection of cats living in enzootic areas and the imperative character of preventive measures in such conditions.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Athanasiou et al. reported average canine heartworm prevalence of 5.96% in Greece, with regional values including 6.73% in Evos, 6.68% in Serres, 6.16% in Florina, 7.3% in Ioannina, 14% in Evritania, 5% in Evia, and 3.18% in Attiki; another nationwide study reported 9.0%.
“Athanasiou et al. [94] carried out a study in which the average prevalence was 5.96%, 6.73% being in the north (Evos), 6.68% (Serres) and 6.16% (Florina), 7.3% in the northwest (Ioannina), 14% in the centre (Evritania), 5% in the centre-east (Evia), and 3.18% (Attiki). In another nationwide study, the prevalence obtained was 9.0% [95].”
From What has happened to heartworm disease in Europe in the last 10 years? (2022) · cites this paper as [94]
Where canine heartworm is present, feline heartworm disease is also present.
“However, it is estimated that where canine heartworm is present, feline heartworm disease is also present (15, 16).”
From Seroprevalence of Feline Heartworm in Spain: Completing the Epidemiological Puzzle of a Neglected Disease in the Cat (2022) · cites this paper as [16]
The prevalence of Dirofilaria spp. in cats varies from 0 to 33% across Europe.
“The prevalence of Dirofilaria spp. in cats varies from 0 to 33% across Europe [11, 30–40].”
From Retrospective evaluation of vector-borne pathogens in cats living in Germany (2012–2020) (2021) · cites this paper as [37]
Studies investigating anti-D immitis antibodies in cats show that the rate of exposure to infection is much higher.
“studies investigating anti-D immitis antibodies in cats show that the rate of exposure to infection is much higher.”
From Dirofilarioses in cats: European guidelines from the ABCD on prevention and management (2020) · cites this paper as [21]
Sometimes sudden death is reported in apparently healthy cats as a consequence of severe pulmonary thromboembolic or haemorrhagic pathology, including haemothorax due to pulmonary artery dissection.
“Sometimes sudden death is reported in apparently healthy cats as a consequence of severe pulmonary thromboembolic or haemorrhagic pathology, including haemothorax due to pulmonary artery dissection.”
From Dirofilarioses in cats: European guidelines from the ABCD on prevention and management (2020) · cites this paper as [21]
Filariae can sometimes be seen in the right heart chambers, pulmonary artery or distal caudal vena cava by echocardiography.
“Filariae can sometimes be seen in the right heart chambers, pulmonary artery or distal caudal vena cava by echocardiography.”
From Dirofilarioses in cats: European guidelines from the ABCD on prevention and management (2020) · cites this paper as [21]
Cites
Chapter 4 Heartworm Disease in Animals and Humans
McCall, J. W., Genchi, C., Kramer, L. H., Guerrero, J., & Venco, L. (2008) · Advances in Parasitology · doi:10.1016/s0065-308x(08)00204-2 · Cited by 609 · see citing works
Is heartworm disease really spreading in Europe?
Genchi, C., Rinaldi, L., Cascone, C., Mortarino, M., & Cringoli, G. (2005) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2005.04.009 · Cited by 222 · see citing works
Nelson, C. T., McCall, J. W., Rubin, S. B., Buzhardt, L. F., Dorion, D. W., Graham, W., Longhofer, S. L., Guerrero, J., Robertson-Plouch, C. K., & Paul, A. J. (2005) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2005.07.009 · Cited by 176 · see citing works
What is new about animal and human dirofilariosis?
Simón, F., Morchón, R., González-Miguel, J., Marcos-Atxutegi, C., & Siles-Lucas, M. (2009) · Trends in Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.pt.2009.06.003 · Cited by 135 · see citing works
Understanding Feline Heartworm Infection: Disease, Diagnosis, and Treatment
Lee, A. C. Y., & Atkins, C. E. (2010) · Topics in Companion Animal Medicine · doi:10.1053/j.tcam.2010.09.003 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Heartworm infection in cats: 50 cases (1985–1997)
Atkins, C. E., DeFrancesco, T. C., Coats, J. R., Sidley, J. A., & Keene, B. W. (2000) · Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association · doi:10.2460/javma.2000.217.355 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
Diakou, Α., Cesare, A. D., Accettura, P. M., Barros, L. A., Iorio, R., Paoletti, B., di Regalbono, A. F., Halos, L., Beugnet, F., & Traversa, D. (2017) · PLoS neglected tropical diseases · doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0005335 · Cited by 78 · see citing works
Montoya-Alonso, J. A., Carretón, E., Corbera, J. A., Juste, M. C., Mellado, I., Morchón, R., & Simón, F. (2011) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2011.01.011 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Morchón, R., Ferreira, A. C., Martín-Pacho, J. R., Montoya, A., Mortarino, M., Genchi, C., & Simón, F. (2004) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2004.08.003 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Venco, L., Genchi, M., Genchi, C., Gatti, D., & Kramer, L. (2011) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2011.01.013 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Prevalence of feline heartworm disease - a global review.
Ryan, W. G., Newcomb, K. M., Soll, M. D., & KNIGHT, D. H. (1995) · Cited by 57 · see citing works
Dirofilaria infections in dogs in different areas of Greece
Diakou, A., Kapantaidakis, E., Tamvakis, A., Giannakis, V., & Strus, N. (2016) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-016-1797-6 · Cited by 56 · see citing works
Clinical evolution and radiographic findings of feline heartworm infection in asymptomatic cats
Venco, L., Genchi, C., Genchi, M., Grandi, G., & Kramer, L. H. (2008) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2008.09.011 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Genchi, C., Venco, L., Ferrari, N., Mortarino, M., & Genchi, M. (2008) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2008.09.005 · Cited by 48 · see citing works
Maia, C., Ramos, C., Coimbra, M., Cardoso, L., & Campino, L. (2015) · Parasitology International · doi:10.1016/j.parint.2014.11.006 · Cited by 46 · see citing works
Feline heartworm infection: serological survey of asymptomatic cats living in northern Italy
Kramer, L., & Genchi, C. (2002) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/s0304-4017(01)00602-1 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
IDENTIFICATION OF CANINE MICROFILARIAE.
Lindsey, J. R. (1965) · PubMed · Cited by 38 · see citing works
Vieira, L., Silvestre-Ferreira, A. C., Fontes-Sousa, A. P., Balreira, A. C., Morchón, R., Carretón, E., Vilhena, H., Simón, F., & Montoya-Alonso, J. A. (2015) · Journal of Helminthology · doi:10.1017/s0022149x14000352 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
Clinical Significance of Feline Heartworm Disease
Dillon, R. A. (1998) · Veterinary Clinics of North America Small Animal Practice · doi:10.1016/s0195-5616(98)50136-2 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Montoya-Alonso, J. A., Carretón, E., García-Guasch, L., Expósito, J., Armario, B., Morchón, R., & Simón, F. (2014) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-014-0506-6 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
The presence of filarial parasites of dogs in Serrae Province
FOUNTA (Α. ΦΟΥΝΤΑ), A., THEODORIDIS (Ι. ΘΕΟΔΩΡΙΔΗΣ), Y., FRYDAS (Σ. ΦΡΥΔΑΣ), S., & CHLIOUNAKIS (Σ. ΧΛΕΙΟΥΝΑΚΗΣ), S. (2018) · Journal of the Hellenic Veterinary Medical Society · doi:10.12681/jhvms.15728 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Parasitosis in wild felids of India: an overview
Moudgil, A. D., Singla, L. D., & Pallavi, P. (2015) · Journal of Threatened Taxa · doi:10.11609/jott.o4236.7641-8 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Dirofilaria immitis in cats: anatomy of a disease.
Nelson, C. (2008) · PubMed · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Multidetector computed tomographic pulmonary angiography in a cat with fatal heartworm disease
Panopoulos, I., Specchi, S., Soubasis, N., Papastefanou, A., Brellou, G., & Auriemma, E. (2018) · Veterinary Radiology & Ultrasound · doi:10.1111/vru.12508 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Self-citationProceedings of the heartworm symposium '95, Auburn, Alabama, USA, 31 March-2nd April, 1995.
Soll, M. D., & Knight, D. H. (1995) · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
The prevalence of Dirofilaria immitis and D. repens in the Old World
Genchi, C., & Kramer, L. H. (2020) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2019.108995 · Cited by 187 · see citing works
What has happened to heartworm disease in Europe in the last 10 years?
Morchón, R., Montoya-Alonso, J. A., Rodríguez-Escolar, I., & Carretón, E. (2022) · Pathogens · doi:10.3390/pathogens11091042 · Cited by 69 · see citing works
Dirofilarioses in cats: European guidelines from the ABCD on prevention and management
Pennisi, M. G., Tasker, S., Hartmann, K., Belák, S., Addie, D., Boucraut-Baralon, C., Egberink, H., Frymus, T., Hofmann-Lehmann, R., Hosie, M., et al. (2020) · Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery · doi:10.1177/1098612x20917601 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Retrospective evaluation of vector-borne pathogens in cats living in Germany (2012–2020)
Schäfer, I., Kohn, B., Volkmann, M., & Müller, E. (2021) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-021-04628-2 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Montoya-Alonso, J. A., García Rodríguez, S. N., Carretón, E., Rodríguez Escolar, I., Costa-Rodríguez, N., Matos, J. I., & Morchón, R. (2022) · Frontiers in Veterinary Science · doi:10.3389/fvets.2022.900371 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Dirofilaria spp. infection in cats from the Mediterranean basin: diagnosis and epidemiology
Carbonara, M., Perles, L., Venco, L., Gabrielli, S., Barrs, V. R., Miró, G., Papadopoulos, E., Lima, C., Bouhsira, E., Baneth, G., et al. (2025) · International Journal for Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.ijpara.2025.01.011 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Tonev, A. S., Kirkova, Z., Iliev, P. T., Roussenov, A., Chaprazov, T., Roydev, R., & Pirovski, N. (2021) · Helminthologia · doi:10.2478/helm-2021-0005 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
- Authors
- Diakou, A., Soubasis, N., Chochlios, T., Oikonomidis, I. L., Tselekis, D., Koutinas, C., Karaiosif, R., Psaralexi, E., Tsouloufi, T. K., Brellou, G., Kritsepi-Konstantinou, M., & Rallis, T.
- Affiliations
- Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (GR)
- ORCID
- Venue
- Parasitology Research
- Published
- 2018-11-05
- Volume
- 118
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 677-682
- ISSN
- 0044-3255 (ISSN-L)
- 0932-0113
- 1432-1955
- OpenAlex
- W2900166414
- Cited by
- 38
- References
- 25
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 1
- FWCI
- 1.89
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Licence
- other-oa
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Parasitology Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Edinburgh Research Explorer (University of Edinburgh) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Zoetis
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › Parasitic Diseases Research and Treatment
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Helminth infection and control
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Research on Leishmaniasis Studies
- Keywords
- Dirofilaria immitis, heartworm disease, canine dirofilariasis, stray dogs, stray cats, Northern Greece, serological diagnosis, echocardiographic detection, parasite mortality, heartworm prevention
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Antibodies, Protozoan, Antigens, Protozoan, Cat Diseases, Cats, Dirofilaria immitis, Dirofilariasis, Dog Diseases, Dogs, Female, Greece, Heart Ventricles, Male, Pulmonary Artery, Prevalence
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
