Occurrence of canine babesiosis: A comparative study of microscopy, PCR and LFA

Canine babesiosis is a tick-borne hemoprotozoan disease caused by intra-erythrocytic parasites of the genus Babesia, mainly B. canis vogeli and B. gibsoni in tropical and subtropical countries, including India. The present study dogs showing clinical signs such as fever, anorexia, vomiting, lethargy, ascites, hind limb weakness, haemoglobinuria and tick infestation were diagnosed using a rapid antibody test kit (LFA), blood smear examination and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Out of 40 suspected cases of canine babesiosis, 27 (67.5%) were positive by LFA, 10 (25%) by microscopic examination and 24 (60%) by PCR. Among diagnostic techniques, LFA showed the higher number of positive cases, followed by PCR and blood smear exaamination. However, LFA is prone to false positives as it detects antibodies from both past and ongoing infections, whereas PCR remains the most sensitive and specific diagnostic tool for detecting the organism in low parasitaemia.