World Association for Veterinary Dermatology Consensus Statement for Diagnosis, and Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines for Treatment and Prevention of Canine Leishmaniosis

Background: Canine leishmaniosis (CanL) due to Leishmania infantum remains common, and veterinarians do not always follow scientifically sound approaches for diagnosis, treatment and prevention.
Objectives: To provide consensus guidelines for diagnosis and evidence-based guidelines for treatment and prevention of CanL.
Methods and Material: Clinical consensus guidelines for the diagnosis were structured based on literature and authors' experience. Three electronic databases were searched for randomised controlled trials, systematic reviews and meta-analyses on treatment and prevention.
Results, Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Diagnosis should be based on compatible clinical signs and/or clinicopathologic abnormalities, exclusion of differentials, demonstration of infection and increased concentration of anti-Leishmania IgG (quantitative serology). Euthanasia for public health purposes is not recommended and drugs with anti-Leishmania activity should be avoided in subclinically infected dogs. Recommended treatments include meglumine antimoniate-allopurinol (first-line treatment), miltefosine-allopurinol (first-line treatment) and aminosidine-allopurinol (second-line treatment); marbofloxacin may be considered in dogs with advanced chronic kidney disease. In endemic areas, recommended measures for prevention include deltamethrin 4% collar, flumethrin 4.5%-imidacloprid 10% collar or permethrin 50%-imidacloprid 10% spot-on, not using infected blood products for transfusion, not breeding seropositive bitches or dogs with CanL, administration of domperidone (seronegative dogs) and dietary nucleotides-active hexose correlated compound (subclinically infected, seropositive dogs). Vaccination with LiESP with MDP may be considered, whereas protein Q vaccine is recommended in areas with very high rates of seroconversion. In non-endemic areas, recommended measures include not using infected blood products for transfusion and removal of infected female dogs from reproduction.
© 2025 The Author(s).