Babesia gibsoni is a tickborne protozoal blood parasite that causes hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, lethargy, and splenomegaly in dogs. Transmission of B. gibsoni is primarily occurring from infected ticks during feeding though transplacental transmission or blood exchange when dogs fight or transfusion also cause the infection. The disease is more severe in young dogs, immunosuppressed dogs, heavily parasitized dogs, and when there is exposure to a virulent strain or concurrent infection.
Infection of B. gibsoni has been reported from Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas for years. Clinical signs present are ambiguous, which includes depression, lethargy, fever, weakness, vomiting, pale gums and anorexia. Severe cases may lead to organ failure and death. However, chronic stages often make the dog a carrier of the organism and becomes asymptomatic. The asymptomatic infected animals facilitate the transmission of parasites to tick vectors.
Prompt diagnosis of dogs infected with B. gibsoni plays an important role in treatment and prevention of the disease. Bioguard Canine Babesia gibsoni Ab Test is designed to detect anti-B. gibsoni antibodies with high sensitivity (96.29%) and specificity (91.66%). In the idea of providing more flexibility in screening the disease to all veterinarians, Bioguard provides rapid tests in detecting B. gibsoniAb with formats of single rapid test and VLabs 4BX (heartworm Ag/ B. gibsoni Ab/E.canis Ab/ Anaplasma Ab).
Sensitivity and specificity of Bioguard Canine Babesia gibsoni Ab Test (using PCR testing as the reference method)
