Leishmaniasis in Cats - Symptoms and Treatment

Author: Laura McKinney
Date Of Creation: 6 August 2021
Update Date: 1 November 2024
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Leishmaniasis - Symptoms and Treatment of Leishmaniasis. Explained under  3 minutes
Video: Leishmaniasis - Symptoms and Treatment of Leishmaniasis. Explained under 3 minutes

Content

THE leishmaniasis is a disease caused by the protozoan (single-celled eukaryotic organism) Leishmania infantum. Technically it is a zoonosis, as it affects humans, although it is mainly dogs that suffer the most from the disease, acting as carriers, being deadly if veterinary treatment is not started.

Leishmania is transmitted through the bite of a mosquito, belonging to the genus Phlebotomus. In this way, the mosquito bites a sick and/or carrier dog and, once the protozoan matures in the insect, it bites another dog, introducing the pathogenic agent. In other words, without mosquitoes, the disease cannot be transmitted. Although the dog is the main victim of this condition, the truth is that it can also affect other animals such as cats. Therefore, at PeritoAnimal we will explain to you what the symptoms of leishmaniasis in cats and what is your treatment.


Feline leishmaniasis

Very common in puppies, leishmaniasis was considered a very strange condition in the cat, due to its natural resistance and the effective response of the immune system to the disease. But, nowadays, we can observe that its incidence is worryingly increasing. There seems to be more likely to get the disease in cats suffering from other diseases, which minimize the effectiveness of the immune system, as can be the case of feline immunodeficiency or toxoplasmosis.

Symptoms of feline leishmaniasis

Leishmaniasis in cats is a disease with a long incubation period (it takes a long time to show symptoms) and once they develop, they are quite non-specific. In cats, the disease can appear in three different ways:


  1. Skin form. Painless subcutaneous nodules, located mainly on the head and neck, may be seen. In addition, these symptoms of feline leishmaniasis are often accompanied by an increase in the size of nearby lymph nodes. These nodes may also open later and become infected. Other skin symptoms can also be observed.
  2. eye shape. The eyes are affected, with conjunctivitis, blepharitis (inflammation of the eyelids), uveitis (inflammation of the uvea), shedding of hair around the eyes, etc., are observed.
  3. Generalized systemic form. This is the least common form of leishmania in cats. If it does, an enlarged lymph nodes can be seen as the main symptom. Furthermore, very specific symptoms may occur, such as anorexia, progressive weight loss, apathy, etc.

Diagnosis of feline leishmaniasis

The disease is diagnosed through specific tests, such as a blood test, with an exam that looks for and quantifies the antibodies generated by the animal in the presence of the protozoan. It is not possible to make a symptomatic diagnosis as the symptoms are not very specific.


Feline leishmaniasis treatment

In leishmaniasis, both in humans and in dogs and cats, there are two strategies when it comes to treatment. On the one hand, we have preventive treatment and, on the other, curative treatment once the disease is diagnosed.

  • O preventive treatment against feline leishmaniasis it consists of avoiding contact with the mosquito. For this, physical barriers are used (for example, putting mosquito screens on the windows) or different insecticides are used, such as repellents. In cats, the use of repellents is very limited, since most of them are toxic to cats, so it is necessary to consult a veterinarian before opting for this preventive measure.
  • In case of treatment to cure leishmania in cats, there are no treatment protocols as efficient as in dogs, since until now the positive diagnosis of the disease in cats had been scarce. Medicines such as Allopurinol and N-methyl-meglumine are used. It is important that the treatment is indicated by a veterinarian and that you always follow their recommendations.

This article is for information purposes only, at PeritoAnimal.com.br we are not able to prescribe veterinary treatments or perform any type of diagnosis. We suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case it has any type of condition or discomfort.