Diagnostic spectrum
Crenosoma vulpis can also be detected using Baermann technique.
see also => Lungworm Profil Dog (service ID 8789)
General information
The adult nematodes, which are 0.4 to 1.5 cm in size, are found in the bronchi and trachea of wild canids, occasionally also in dogs. The females lay eggs there, from which the L1 larvae hatch. These L1 larvae are coughed up, swallowed and later excreted in the faeces. They then infect various snail and slug species in which they develop into the infective third-stage larvae (L3). Definitive hosts in turn become infected by ingesting these intermediate hosts or transport hosts (small amphibians and reptiles). After penetrating the intestinal wall, L3 migrate through the portal vein, liver and right heart into the lungs, where they mature into adults. Lungworm infections can be asymptomatic, detection of lungworm larvae is often an incidental finding during routine coproscopic examinations. Mild to severe respiratory symptoms are also possible, including coughing, nasal discharge, tachypnoea and dyspnoea. Young animals are more frequently affected and usually suffer more severely.