Dvir Eran, Rosa Chantal, Handel Ian, Mellanby Richard J, Schoeman Johan P
Department of Companion Animal Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa; and, Tel Hai Academic College, Upper Galilee, Israel.
Onderstepoort J Vet Res. 2019 Mar 28;86(1):e1-e5. doi: 10.4102/ojvr.v86i1.1644.
Canine babesiosis is a virulent infection of dogs in South Africa caused principally by Babesia rossi. Hypovitaminosis D has been reported in a wide range of infectious diseases in humans and dogs, and low vitamin D status has been associated with poor clinical outcomes. However, the relationship between vitamin D status and canine babesiosis has not been investigated. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between the presence and severity of B. rossi infection and vitamin D status of infected dogs. Owners with dogs with a confirmed diagnosis of B. rossi infection and of healthy control dogs were invited to enrol onto the study. Vitamin D status was assessed by measurement of serum concentrations of the major circulating vitamin D metabolite, 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D). Dogs with babesiosis (n = 34) had significantly lower mean serum 25(OH)D concentrations than healthy dogs (n = 24) (37.76 ± 21.25 vs. 74.2 ± 20.28 nmol/L). The effect of babesiosis on serum 25(OH)D concentrations was still significant after adjusting for any effect of age, body weight and sex. There was a negative relationship between serum 25(OH)D concentrations and disease severity in dogs with babesiosis. Serum concentrations of creatinine and alanine aminotransferase and time to last meal were not associated with serum 25(OH)D concentrations in dogs with babesiosis. In conclusion, dogs with Babesia rossi infections had lower serum 25(OH)D concentrations than healthy dogs. The inverse correlation between 25(OH)D concentrations and the clinical severity score indicate that hypovitaminosis D might be a helpful additional indicator of disease severity.
犬巴贝斯虫病是南非犬类的一种严重感染病，主要由罗氏巴贝斯虫引起。维生素D缺乏症在人类和犬类的多种传染病中都有报道，维生素D水平低与临床预后不良有关。然而，维生素D水平与犬巴贝斯虫病之间的关系尚未得到研究。本研究的目的是探讨罗氏巴贝斯虫感染的存在及严重程度与受感染犬类维生素D水平之间的关系。邀请确诊患有罗氏巴贝斯虫感染的犬只的主人以及健康对照犬只的主人参与本研究。通过测量主要循环维生素D代谢物25-羟基维生素D（25[OH]D）的血清浓度来评估维生素D水平。患有巴贝斯虫病的犬只（n = 34）的平均血清25(OH)D浓度显著低于健康犬只（n = 24）（37.76 ± 21.25 vs. 74.2 ± 20.28 nmol/L）。在调整年龄、体重和性别等因素的影响后，巴贝斯虫病对血清25(OH)D浓度的影响仍然显著。患有巴贝斯虫病的犬只血清25(OH)D浓度与疾病严重程度呈负相关。患有巴贝斯虫病的犬只的血清肌酐、丙氨酸转氨酶浓度以及距上次进食的时间与血清25(OH)D浓度无关。总之，感染罗氏巴贝斯虫的犬只的血清25(OH)D浓度低于健康犬只。25(OH)D浓度与临床严重程度评分之间呈负相关，表明维生素D缺乏症可能是疾病严重程度的一个有用的附加指标。
