Do not let your guard down! Prevalence of Dirofilaria immitis and Dirofilaria repens in dogs entering shelters in northern Italy
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: In Italy, the area of highest prevalence for canine heartworm disease (CHWD) has historically been along the Po River Valley in the northern area of the country, where prevalence in the mid-nineties ranged from 31% to 98%. Currently, increased awareness among practitioners and the availability of preventives have led to a dramatic decrease in prevalence in the area, although cases of CHWD continue to be diagnosed, suggesting the presence of canine reservoirs, including unowned dogs. METHODS: The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of Dirofilaria spp. in stray dogs entering shelters located in the Po River Valley of northern Italy by using the modified Knott's test and by antigenic testing. RESULTS: Out of the 510 dogs tested, 173 (33.9%) were positive for circulating microfilariae: 15.7% (80/510) with D. immitis, 6.9% (35/510) with D. repens, and 11.4% (58/510) with a mixed infection. CONCLUSIONS: Unowned dog populations represent an important reservoir for the parasite, allowing D. immitis to remain in a given geographical area and increasing the risk of exposure to all dogs.
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The results are consistent with previous studies reporting no clear breed or sex pre-disposition beyond differences attributable to management practices, such as those observed between hunting or working dogs and companion animals.
“Regarding intrinsic host factors, the results are consistent with previous studies reporting no clear breed or sex pre-disposition beyond differences attributable to management practices, such as those observed between hunting or working dogs and companion animals (4, 5, 10, 12, 26–29).”
From Deciphering the socio-environmental factors associated with realized heartworm transmission risk in dogs from Portugal and Spain (2026) · cites this paper as [10]
The Background (page unavailable) reports higher heartworm prevalence in shelter-housed than owned dogs and links higher prevalence to lack of veterinary care, supporting a management-related difference. The Results (page unavailable) give infection rates by sex but do not establish the absence of a sex predisposition. The paper does not assess breed or compare hunting or working dogs with companion animals. (LLM, conf=0.78)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredAge is not necessarily associated with a greater risk of infection per unit of time, but prevalence tends to increase with host age, most likely reflecting cumulative exposure over time in endemic areas.
“Likewise, although age is not necessarily associated with a greater risk of infection per unit of time, prevalence tends to increase with host age, most likely reflecting cumulative exposure over time in endemic areas (4, 5, 8–13).”
From Deciphering the socio-environmental factors associated with realized heartworm transmission risk in dogs from Portugal and Spain (2026) · cites this paper as [10]
The Results and Discussion report higher Dirofilaria prevalence in adult and old shelter dogs than in young dogs in northern Italy. The paper does not assess infection risk per unit of time or attribute the age difference to cumulative exposure. Its age-group data also do not show a steady increase: prevalence is lower in old dogs than in adults. (LLM, conf=0.86)
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- Authors
- Genchi, M., Venco, L., Melideo, O., Kramer, L., Fozzer, M., & Vismarra, A.
- Affiliations
- University of Parma (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Vismarra, Alice
- Venue
- Parasites & Vectors
- Published
- 2025-10-14
- Volume
- 18
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 412-412
- ISSN
- 1756-3305 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC12522961
- OpenAlex
- W4415156012
- Cited by
- 7
- References
- 25
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7
- FWCI
- 5.39
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Locations
- Parasites & Vectors (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Institutional Research Information System University of Turin (University of Turin) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- Università degli Studi di Padova (PE00000007)
- Elanco Animal Health
- NextGenerationEU (C93C22005170007, PE00000007)
- 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, Dirofilaria repens, canine heartworm disease, stray dogs, dog shelters, prevalence, reservoir hosts, Po Valley, antigen testing
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Antigens, Helminth, Dirofilaria immitis, Dirofilariasis, Disease Reservoirs, Dog Diseases, Dogs, Female, Italy, Male, Prevalence, Dirofilaria repens
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