Comparison of three methods for the detection of Angiostrongylus vasorum in the final host

- Angiostrongylosis can be difficult to diagnose.
- Plucks from foxes, reservoir hosts for A. vasorum are analysed using 3 methods.
- Sensitivity of direct inspection, nested PCR and the Angio Detect kit were 84.1%, 69.5% and 76.8% respectively.
- Agreement between tests ranged from 45.6 to 79.7%.
- A novel nested PCR-RFLP for the detection of dog lungworm spp. is described.

Angiostrongylosis is potentially fatal parasitic nematode infection affecting dogs which can be difficult to diagnose. In recent years several microscopical, serological and molecular detection methods have been developed, however there are few studies that have compared the relative performance of these methods. Screening necropsy material from an opportunistic sample of 140 foxes (82 of which were considered to be infected with Angiostrongylus vasorum), indicated sensitivities of 84.1% for dissection and visual examination of plucks, 69.5% for nested PCR of an 18S rRNA fragment and 76.8% for a canine A. vasorum antigen detection test (IDEXX Angio Detect) of tissue fluid samples respectively. Agreement between the tests ranged from 45.6 to 79.7%. A novel nested PCR-RFLP for the detection and identification of canid lungworm spp. is described.