Erliquiose canina: revisão de literatura

Abstract

Ehrlichiosis is an infectious disease caused by the hemoparasitic bacterium belonging to the order Rickettsiales and genus Ehrlichia spp. They are obligate intracellular parasites of mature or immature hematopoietic cells. The main species is Ehrlichia canis and its prevalence occurs in dogs, being a disease of great Veterinary importance. Its transmission occurs naturally when there is the presence of a vector, such as the tick Rhipicephalus sanguineus, or artificially, through blood transfusion. Infected dogs may present mild to severe symptoms or even be asymptomatic, depending on the stage of the disease and the animal's health condition. Clinical diagnosis is usually not enough, and complementary tests are required such as PCR for Ehrlichia or the most used in the Veterinary Clinic, 4DX test which is an ELISA method and diagnoses in addition to Ehrlichia, Anaplasma, Lyme Disease and Heartworm. Despite the possible severity of the disease, treatment is simple, consisting of antibiotic therapy, with doxycycline being the antibiotic of choice. The incidence of Ehrlichiosis in Brazil has been increasing significantly, so the study for the treatment and prevention of this disease is of paramount importance.