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Heartworm Disease: Today’s Discoveries, Tomorrow’s Practice

Editor: 
Filipe Dantas-Torres: Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Brazil

This collection published in Parasites & Vectors comprises papers submitted in relation to the 2022 Triennial Symposium of the American Heartworm Society, New Orleans, United States, 8th – 11th September 2022.

The article processing charges (APC) for the articles in this series were funded by the American Heartworm Society. All articles in this series have undergone the journal’s standard peer-review process overseen by the Editors and are subject to all of the journal’s standard policies, and each article can also be found individually in the journal. The peer review of any submissions for which the Editors have competing interests was handled by another Editorial Board Member who has no competing interests.



  1. In recent years, the usefulness of echocardiography and serum biomarkers in the diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension (PH) in dogs with heartworm disease has been studied. Previously, N-terminal pro B-type natri...

    Authors: Noelia Costa-Rodríguez, Sara N. García-Rodríguez, Jorge I. Matos, Yaiza Falcón-Cordón, Rodrigo Morchón, José A. Montoya-Alonso and Elena Carretón
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:292
    Content type: Research Published on:

  2. The American Heartworm Society canine guidelines recommend treatment with doxycycline prior to adulticide administration to reduce levels of Wolbachia and its associated metabolites, which are known to be a leadi...

    Authors: Andrew R. Moorhead, Christopher C. Evans, Kaori Sakamoto, Michael T. Dzimianski, Abdelmoneim Mansour, Utami DiCosty, Crystal Fricks, Scott McCall, Ben Carson, C. Thomas Nelson and John W. McCall
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:251
    Content type: Research Published on:

  3. Since the advent of ivermectin (along with melarsomine and doxycycline), heartworm has come to be viewed as a solved problem in veterinary medicine, diminishing investment into non-clinical research on Dirofilari...

    Authors: Timothy G. Geary
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:247
    Content type: Review Published on:

  4. This study was conducted to determine whether heartworm infective larvae (L3) collected from mosquitoes fed on dogs during low-dose, short-treatment-regimen doxycycline and ivermectin could develop normally in do...

    Authors: John Wilson McCall, Utami DiCosty, Abdelmoneim Mansour, Crystal Fricks, Scott McCall, Michael Timothy Dzimianski and Ben Carson
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:199
    Content type: Research Published on:

  5. Cats can be infected by Dirofilaria immitis, the causative agent of heartworm disease, characterized by respiratory signs, airway hyperreactivity, remodelling and inflammation. Allergy is a multifactorial patholo...

    Authors: Sara N. García-Rodríguez, Noelia Costa-Rodríguez, Jorge I. Matos, Yaiza Falcón-Cordón, Rodrigo Morchón, Elena Carretón and José A. Montoya-Alonso
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:192
    Content type: Research Published on:

  6. Canine heartworm disease (CHD) caused by Dirofilaria immitis remains a common preventable disease with increasing incidence in some parts of the USA. The treatment guidelines of the American Heartworm Society (AH...

    Authors: C. Autumn M. Vetter, Alison G. Meindl, Bianca N. Lourenço, Michael Coyne, Corie Drake, Rachel Murphy, Ira G. Roth and Andrew R. Moorhead
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:191
    Content type: Research Published on:

  7. Microfilarial (mf) counts were monitored over 21.3 months for any rebound that might occur in counts, and adulticidal efficacy was assessed following administration of low dosage with short- and long-treatment...

    Authors: John Wilson McCall, Abdelmoneim Mansour, Utami DiCosty, Crystal Fricks, Scott McCall, Michael Timothy Dzimianski and Ben Carson
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:190
    Content type: Research Published on:

  8. Immune complexing of target antigen to high affinity host antibody is recognized to impact the sensitivity of commercial heartworm antigen tests. Published information describing the effect of heat on interfer...

    Authors: Jeff M. Gruntmeir, Jeff R. Abbott, Peter E. Kima, Maureen T. Long, Byron L. Blagburn and Heather S. Walden
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:152
    Content type: Research Published on:

  10. Dirofilaria immitis is the causative agent of heartworm disease in wild and domestic canids, felids, and mustelids. Recent studies demonstrate that additional families in the order Carnivora are also susceptible ...

    Authors: Kaitlyn E. Upton, Christine M. Budke and Guilherme G. Verocai
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:150
    Content type: Brief Report Published on:

  11. Compliance failure with administration of heartworm (HW) disease preventives has been reported as the main contributor to HW disease incidence in medicalized dogs. This study aimed to evaluate purchase complia...

    Authors: Kennedy Mwacalimba, Derek Sears, Christopher Brennan, Barbara Poulsen Nautrup, Jenifer Sheehy, Kristine Smith and Christopher Adolph
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:149
    Content type: Research Published on:

  12. Dirofilaria immitis (the canine heartworm) is widespread in the tropics, with prevalence surpassing 30% in high-risk areas. In addition to the suitable climatic conditions that favour mosquito abundance and filar...

    Authors: Filipe Dantas-Torres, Jennifer Ketzis, Gabriela Pérez Tort, Andrei Daniel Mihalca, Gad Baneth, Domenico Otranto, Malaika Watanabe, Bui Khanh Linh, Tawin Inpankaew, Pablo Borrás, Sangaran Arumugam, Barend Louis Penzhorn, Adrian Patalinghug Ybañez, Peter Irwin and Rebecca J. Traub
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:148
    Content type: Review Published on:

  13. Mosquitoes serve as the vector of canine heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis), which represents a significant and persistent threat to canine health. A reduction in the longevity and/or reproductive success of mosquit...

    Authors: Christopher Charles Evans, Dorothy Normile, Sheryl Gamble, Frank Guerino, Michael T. Dzimianski and Andrew Riddell Moorhead
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:147
    Content type: Research Published on:

  14. Intracardiac heartworm (IH) disease is a serious condition that can become life threatening if the patient develops caval syndrome. We aim to describe the management and outcome of IH in dogs evaluated by Medv...

    Authors: Jorge Vila and Elisabeth Alost
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:146
    Content type: Research Published on:

  15. Infection by the canine heartworm, Dirofilaria immitis, causes significant cardiopulmonary disease, with progression impacted by increasing parasite numbers and duration of infection. The renin–angiotensin–a...

    Authors: Darcy B. Adin, Meaghan Spalla, Heather Walden, Jeff Gruntmeir, Jorge A. Hernandez and Maureen Long
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:145
    Content type: Research Published on:

  16. This retrospective study evaluated modified three-dose melarsomine treatment protocols in a shelter setting and compared them to the American Heartworm Society (AHS)-recommended protocol.

    Authors: Karen Ann Ward, Linda Susan Jacobson, Aveline Baldasan Lacaden and Kelly Ann Harrison
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:144
    Content type: Research Published on:

  17. Assessment of the safety of heartworm preventatives in dogs with pre-existing patent heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) infections is necessary because rapid adult worm and microfilarial death can lead to severe cli...

    Authors: Sheerin Mathur, Phyllis B. Malpas, Sean Mahabir, Joseph Boucher, Aleah Pullins, Genevieve Gagnon, Tom L. McTier and Steven Maeder
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:119
    Content type: Research Published on:

  18. Angiogenesis is defined as the formation of new vessels by sprouting of endothelial cells from pre-existing vessels in response to stimuli, such as hypoxia or inflammation. Subcutaneous dirofilariasis, caused by

    Authors: María del Pilar Pérez Rodríguez, Claudia Alarcón-Torrecillas, Miguel Pericacho, Iván Rodríguez-Escolar, Elena Carretón and Rodrigo Morchón
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:105
    Content type: Research Published on:

  19. Aedes aegypti is one of the main species responsible for the transmission of mosquito-borne pathogens worldwide. The isoxazoline Sarolaner has excellent efficacy as an acaricide against ticks and mites and as an ...

    Authors: Thomas Geurden, Sara Chapin, John W. McCall, Abdelmoneim Mansour, Sean P. Mahabir, Kristina Kryda and Tom McTier
    Citation: Parasites & Vectors 2023 16:95
    Content type: Research Published on: