Impact of heat treatment on Dirofilaria immitis antigen detection in shelter dogs
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: The diagnosis and management of canine heartworm disease is a growing concern for shelter veterinarians. Although the accuracy of commercial antigen test kits has been widely studied, recent reports have renewed interest in antigen blocking as a causative factor for false "no antigen detected" results. The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of false "no antigen detected" results in adult dogs entering shelters in northern, southern, and western regions of the country and to identify historical and clinical risk factors for such results. METHODS: Serum samples were evaluated for Dirofilaria immitis antigen using a commercially available point-of-care ELISA; samples in which no antigen was detected underwent a heat treatment protocol and repeat antigen testing. Whole blood samples underwent Knott testing to identify the presence of microfilariae. Historical and clinical findings were analyzed using exact logistic regression. RESULTS: A total of 616 samples were analyzed. Overall prevalence of positive antigen test results (prior to heat treatment) was 7.3% and frequency of false "no antigen detected" results due to antigen blocking (ie, samples with no antigen detected prior to heat treatment and positive after heat treatment) was 5.2%. Among dogs that had no detectable antigen on the initial tests, dogs that had microfilariae detected via modified Knott testing (OR = 32.30, p-value = 0.013) and dogs that previously received a heartworm preventive (OR = 3.81, p-value = 0.016) had greater odds of antigen blocking than dogs without these factors. Among dogs that were heartworm positive, those without microfilariae detected had greater odds of antigen blocking than dogs with this factor (OR = 11.84, p-value = 0.0005). Geographic region of origin was significantly associated with occurrence of antigen blocking (p = 0.0036); however, blocking occurred in all regions sizably contributing to heartworm diagnoses. Of the 74 dogs found to be infected with heartworms in this study, 39.2% (29) had no detectable antigen prior to heat treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Heat treatment of serum samples should be considered to improve diagnostic test accuracy, particularly in dogs that reportedly received a heartworm preventive prior to antigen testing regardless of region of origin.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
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?
The use of heat-treated serum for in-house antigen tests can provide a solution to the antigen-masking problem.
“The use of heat-treated serum for in-house antigen tests can provide a solution to this problem and therefore has been practised in the context of this study since 2015 (Velasquez et al. 2014; DiGangi et al. 2017).”
From Current trends in canine dirofilariosis in Austria-do we face a pre-endemic status? (2020) · cites this paper as DiGangi et al. 2017
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Veterinary parasitology reference manual
Foreyt, W. J. (2001) · Journal of Equine Veterinary Science · doi:10.1016/s0737-0806(01)80018-6 · Cited by 347 · see citing works
Heat treatment prior to testing allows detection of antigen of Dirofilaria immitis in feline serum
Little, S. E., Raymond, M. R., Thomas, J. E., Gruntmeir, J., Hostetler, J. A., Meinkoth, J. H., & Blagburn, B. L. (2014) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/1756-3305-7-1 · Cited by 286 · see citing works
Pulaski, C. N., Malone, J. B., Bourguinat, C., Prichard, R. K., Geary, T. G., Ward, D., Klei, T. R., Guidry, T., Smith, G. `., Delcambre, B. A., et al. (2014) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-014-0494-6 · Cited by 112 · see citing works
Comparison of heartworm antigen test kit performance in dogs having low heartworm burdens
Courtney, C. H., & Zeng, Q.-Y. (2001) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/s0304-4017(01)00374-0 · Cited by 81 · see citing works
Pre-treatment with heat facilitates detection of antigen of Dirofilaria immitis in canine samples
Little, S. E., Munzing, C., Heise, S. R., Allen, K. E., Starkey, L. A., Johnson, E. M., Meinkoth, J. H., & Reichard, M. V. (2014) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2014.01.007 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Drake, J., Gruntmeir, J., Merritt, H., Allen, L., & Little, S. E. (2015) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-015-0698-4 · Cited by 60 · see citing works
Increased prevalence of Dirofilaria immitis antigen in canine samples after heat treatment
Velasquez, L., Blagburn, B. L., Duncan-Decoq, R., Johnson, E. M., Allen, K. E., Meinkoth, J., Gruntmeir, J., & Little, S. E. (2014) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2014.03.021 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Colby, K. N., Levy, J. K., Dunn, K. F., & Michaud, R. I. (2011) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2011.01.018 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
Ciucă, L., Genchi, M., Kramer, L., Mangia, C., Miron, L. D., Prete, L. D., Maurelli, M. P., Cringoli, G., & Rinaldi, L. (2016) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2016.05.032 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Animal shelters: Managing heartworms in resource-scarce environments
Polak, K. C., & Smith-Blackmore, M. (2014) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2014.03.023 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 2
- [2]DiGangi B. Practical management of canine heartworm disease in animal shelters. In: Proceedings, 19th Annual ABVP Symposium, Nashville, TN. 2014.
- [3]Isaza N. Treating heartworm in shelter dogs: 500+ cases (and counting!). Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Conference. 2014:2014. http://www.maddiesfund.org/Maddies_Institute/Videos/Treating_Heartworm_Disease.html. Accessed 19 Oct 2016
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Little, S., Saleh, M., Wohltjen, M., & Nagamori, Y. (2018) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-018-2736-5 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Broger, T., Tsionksy, M., Mathew, A., Lowary, T. L., Pinter, A., Plisova, T., Bartlett, D., Barbero, S., Denkinger, C. M., Moreau, E., et al. (2019) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0215443 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Anvari, D., Narouei, E., Daryani, A., Sarvi, S., Moosazadeh, M., Hezarjaribi, H. Z., Narouei, M. R., & Gholami, S. (2020) · Research in Veterinary Science · doi:10.1016/j.rvsc.2020.04.002 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
Hodo, C. L., Rodriguez, J. Y., Curtis‐Robles, R., Zecca, I. B., Snowden, K. F., Cummings, K. J., & Hamer, S. A. (2018) · Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine · doi:10.1111/jvim.15352 · Cited by 57 · see citing works
Heartworm prevalence in dogs versus cats: Multiple diagnostic modalities provide new insights
Hays, K. M., Rodriguez, J. Y., Little, S. E., Litster, A., Mwacalimba, K. K., Sundstrom, K. D., Amodie, D. M., Serrano, M. A., GUÉRIOS, S. D., Lane, J. N., et al. (2020) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vpoa.2020.100027 · Cited by 44 · see citing works
Gruntmeir, J. M., Long, M. T., Blagburn, B. L., & Walden, H. S. (2020) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2020.109169 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Jacobson, L. S., & DiGangi, B. A. (2021) · Frontiers in Veterinary Science · doi:10.3389/fvets.2021.702018 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Self-citationCurrent trends in canine dirofilariosis in Austria-do we face a pre-endemic status?
Sonnberger, K., Duscher, G. G., Fuehrer, H.-P., & Leschnik, M. (2020) · Parasitology Research · doi:10.1007/s00436-019-06576-4 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Starkey, L. A., Bowles, J. V., & Blagburn, B. L. (2020) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2020.109134 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Optimizing heartworm diagnosis in dogs using multiple test combinations
Lane, J. N., Litster, A., Little, S. E., Rodriguez, J. Y., Mwacalimba, K. K., Sundstrom, K. D., Amirian, E. S., GUÉRIOS, S. D., Serrano, M. A., Hays, K. M., et al. (2021) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-021-04715-4 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Gruntmeir, J. M., Thompson, N. M., Long, M. T., Blagburn, B. L., & Walden, H. S. (2021) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-020-04573-6 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
Detecting Dirofilaria immitis: Current Practices and Novel Diagnostic Methods
Pietrzak, D., Łuczak, J. W., & Wiśniewski, M. (2024) · Pathogens · doi:10.3390/pathogens13110950 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
Constantinoiu, C. C., Croton, C., Paterson, M., Knott, L., Henning, J., Mallyon, J., & Coleman, G. T. (2023) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-022-05633-9 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Panetta, J. L., Calvani, N. E. D., Orr, B., Nicoletti, A. G., Ward, M. P., & Šlapeta, J. R. (2021) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-021-04896-y · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Prevalence of Dirofilaria immitis in shelter dogs in Bucaramanga metropolitan area, Colombia
Muñoz, A. A. F., Martínez, A. R., & Pinilla, J. C. (2020) · Veterinary Parasitology Regional Studies and Reports · doi:10.1016/j.vprsr.2020.100489 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Huggins, L. G., Koehler, A. V. A., Gasser, R. B., & Traub, R. J. (2023) · Advances in Parasitology/Advances in parasitology · doi:10.1016/bs.apar.2022.12.001 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Sobotyk, C., Savadelis, M. D., McLean, N. J., & Verocai, G. G. (2020) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2020.109070 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Murillo, D. F. B., Moye, A., & Wang, C. (2024) · Pathogens · doi:10.3390/pathogens13010056 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Nelson, C., & Johnson, C. M. (2024) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-024-06178-9 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Fudge, J. M., Boyanowski, B., Page, B., Liu, S., & Rogovskyy, A. S. (2020) · BMC Veterinary Research · doi:10.1186/s12917-020-02607-w · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Murillo, D. F. B., Campbell, E. J., Moorhead, A. R., & Wang, C. (2024) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-024-06337-y · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Kelly, M. A., Sanders, T. L., Starnes, A., Orr, E., Luksovsky, J. L., Sobotyk, C., Hakimi, H., Weerarathne, P., Budke, C. M., & Verocai, G. G. (2026) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-026-07323-2 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Hays, K. M., Rodriguez, J. Y., Little, S. E., Litster, A., Mwacalimba, K. K., Sundstrom, K. D., Amodie, D. M., Serrano, M. A., GUÉRIOS, S. D., Lane, J. N., et al. (2020) · Veterinary Parasitology · doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2020.109142
RetractedThe understanding of heartworm disease: Diagnosis and treatments
Zhang, Y. (2022) · AIP conference proceedings · doi:10.1063/5.0117648
Lavalle-Galvis, R. J. D., Oviedo, M., Badillo, M., Angarita, E. V., Díaz, D., & Teresa Oviedo, S. (2024) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.4865257
Panetta, J. L., Calvani, N. E. D., Orr, B., Nicoletti, A. G., Ward, M. P., & Šlapeta, J. R. (2021) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.15139181
Murillo, D. F. B., Campbell, E. J., Moorhead, A. R., & Wang, C. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26733523
Murillo, D. F. B., Campbell, E. J., Moorhead, A. R., & Wang, C. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26733517
Murillo, D. F. B., Campbell, E. J., Moorhead, A. R., & Wang, C. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26733526
Murillo, D. F. B., Campbell, E. J., Moorhead, A. R., & Wang, C. (2024) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.26733520
Kelly, M. A., Starnes, A., Schech, M., Clarke, E., Ramos, R. A. N., Hakimi, H., Weerarathne, P., & Verocai, G. G. (2026) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-026-07341-0
Adulticide treatment with melarsomine: outcome in 283 heartworm-positive dogs in Germany
Maerz, I., Rütjes, S., Genz, S., & Žagar, P. (2026) · Parasites & Vectors · doi:10.1186/s13071-026-07404-2
- Authors
- DiGangi, B. A., Dworkin, C., Stull, J. W., O’Quin, J., Elser, M., Marsh, A. E., Groshong, L., Wolfson, W., Duhon, B., Broaddus, K., Gingrich, E. N., Swiniarski, E., & Berliner, E. A.
- Affiliations
- University of Florida (US)
- The Ohio State University (US)
- Louisiana State University (US)
- Tree House Humane Society (US)
- Cornell University (US)
- Corresponding author
- DiGangi, Brian A.
- Venue
- Parasites & Vectors
- Published
- 2017-11
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- S2
- Pages
- 483-483
- ISSN
- 1756-3305 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC5688474
- OpenAlex
- W2767482544
- Cited by
- 33
- References
- 10
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2
- FWCI
- 2.53
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- Parasites & Vectors (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- University of Florida Digital Collections (University of Florida) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- IslandScholar (University of Prince Edward Island) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- 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
- canine heartworm disease, Dirofilaria immitis, false-negative results, shelter dogs, microfilariae, diagnostic accuracy, regional variation
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Antigens, Helminth, Diagnostic Tests, Routine, Dirofilaria immitis, Dirofilariasis, Dog Diseases, Dogs, Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay, Hot Temperature, Point-of-Care Systems
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
