Heartgard

A heartworm is considered a parasitic worm. Its scientific name is Dirofilaria immitis. The parasitic worm is transmitted from one host to another via mosquito bites.

The heartworm, a kind of filaria, looks like a spaghetti noodle. This worm does not only infect animals such as dogs, cats, foxes and sea lions but also human beings. The heartworm is called as such because the last stage of its life cycle, the parasitic worm travels and stays in the heart of its host. The presence of the worm inside the heart may cause congestive heart diseases.

The parasitic worm was confined in places with southern climates but has spread all throughout the world where mosquitoes are present.

Heartworms go through several stages of life, the beginning of which requires mosquitoes. In dogs, the life cycle of the worm takes 6.5 to 7 months.

The worm is capable of bearing millions of young everyday called microfilariae. These young worms can circulate in the blood stream for two years until they are sucked in by mosquitoes where they will develop in to another stage in their life cycle. After developing inside a mosquito, the worm goes to the head of the mosquito waiting to be injected to its new host. The worm is transferred as soon as the mosquito bites its host. After being transferred, it will stay at the site where the mosquito bit the new host in order to develop again. After developing, the heartworm then moves to the muscles of the chest or the abdomen and stays there for another 45 to 60 days. Between days 75 to 120 after infection of the host, the parasitic worm enters the blood stream until it reaches the arteries of the lung.

Dogs infested with the parasite often show little symptoms. Most of the worms end up in different parts of the body such as the eyes, causing blindness. Dogs with heartworms, often living a sedentary lifestyle, age faster than those not infected as their lungs, kidneys and liver are damaged by the parasite. The most common symptoms of heartworm infestation are coughing up blood and congestive heart failure.

Blood testing is performed in patients suspected to be infested with heartworms.

Treatment of heartworms takes a long time. Efficacy of treatments depends on the time the infestation was diagnosed. Treatments to kill the adult parasitic worms are different from the treatments used to kill its young.

Tags: Dog, Feline, Cat, Dog Meds, Pet