Seroprevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi in dogs in Alabama, USA

• Published in: Preventive veterinary medicine Vol. 31; no. 1; pp. 127 - 131
• Main Authors: Wright, James C, Chambers, Margaret, Mullen, Gary R, Swango, Larry J, D'Andrea, George H, Boyce, Alicia J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01-07-1997
• Subjects: Alabama - epidemiology; Animals; Antibodies, Bacterial - blood; Antibodies, Bacterial - immunology; Bacterial Vaccines - therapeutic use; Borrelia burgdorferi; Borrelia burgdorferi Group - immunology; Dog Diseases - epidemiology; Dog Diseases - immunology; Dog Diseases - prevention & control; Dogs; Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect - methods; Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect - veterinary; Lyme Disease - epidemiology; Lyme Disease - immunology; Lyme Disease - veterinary; Prevalence; Seroprevalence; Tick-Borne Diseases - epidemiology; Tick-Borne Diseases - prevention & control; Tick-Borne Diseases - veterinary; Alabama; Borrelia burgdorferi; Dogs; Seroprevalence
• ISSN: 0167-5877; 1873-1716
• DOI: 10.1016/S0167-5877(96)01112-9

A random sample of private small-animal practices in Alabama submitted sera from dogs with known tick contact. A total of 579 samples from the three geographic regions of the state were collected (58% of the targeted sample size). Sera were screened for antibodies to
Borrelia burgdorferi using an indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test which had a sensitivity and specificity of greater than 90%. Anti-
B.
burgdorferi titers of ⩾ 1:64 were considered to be positive, based on results from
B. burgdorferi-moculated dogs. Ten of the 579 samples (1.7%) were positive, and titers ranged from 1:64 to 1:512. Seropositive dogs were found throughout the state, and there was no significant difference in seroprevalence by region (Mantel-Haenszel
χ
2,
P = 0.85). These results indicate that the seroprevalence for canine Lyme disease in Alabama is low and that use of the canine Lyme disease vaccine is not justified.