Skip to content
Research Article Open access CC BY 4.0

Study of Haematological and Biochemical Alterations in Clinical Cases of Canine Ehrlichiosis to Understand the Clinical Picture of the Disease

Sonika Verma, Mukesh Kumar Srivastava, Jitendra Tiwari, Ashish Srivastava, Rupam Sachan, Shruti Bhatt, Arpana Raikwar, Shveta Singh

Journal of Advances in Microbiology · pp. 48–56 · Published 20 Jun 2024

10.9734/jamb/2024/v24i6832

Abstract

Aims: To study the effect of Ehrlichia canis infection on various haematological and biochemical parameters as compared to the normal healthy animals in order to understand the disease in dogs. Study Design: Dogs who comes to the veterinary hospital with symptoms of ehrlichiosis were included in the study. Haematological and biochemical parameters of dogs found positive for ehrlichiosis were analysed. The values of these parameters were subsequently compared to healthy animals in order to identify any significant difference caused by ehrlichiosis. Place and Duration of Study: The studied was conducted at Department of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinary University Mathura, India. The investigation involved collecting samples from February 2023 to March 2024. Methodology: 119 dogs infected with Ehrlichia canis were studied for changes in biochemical parameters like blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, alkaline phosphatase, alanine transaminase, aspartate amino transferase, total leucocyte count, total erythrocyte count, haemoglobin, haematocrit, erythrocyte indices (MCV, MCH, MCHC), differential leucocyte count, platelet count and platelet indices (MPV, PDW, PCT). Student's t-test in Graphpad Prism was used to compare these values to healthy animals. Results: The study confirms that ehrlichiosis leads to significant haematological and biochemical changes in dogs. Infected dogs have lower Hb, TEC, and PCV than healthy animals, indicating anaemia. Thrombocytopenia and leukopenia were also observed in the infected animals. Non-significant differences in MCV, MCH, and MCHC between healthy and infected dogs indicate normocytic, normochromic anaemia. Anisocytosis is indicated by significant RDW-CV increases in infected dogs compared to healthy dogs. Increased liver-specific enzymes like ALT, AST, and ALP and kidney-related enzymes like BUN and CRT suggest hepatic and renal involvement in disease pathophysiology. Conclusion: The results indicate that clinicians can use standard haematological and biochemical markers obtained upon admission of diseased animals to predict and assess the risk of ehrlichiosis. These findings can be utilized to improve the diagnosis and treatment of canine ehrlichiosis.

Ehrlichia canis dog haematology biochemical study RDW-CV Mathura India

References (32)

  1. 1 Diagnosis of canine monocytotropic ehrlichiosis (Ehrlichia canis): An overview [DOI]
  2. 2 Guideline for veterinary practitioners on canine ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis in Europe [DOI]
  3. 3 The increasing recognition of rickettsial pathogens in dogs and people [DOI]
  4. 4 Ehrlichial Diseases of Dogs [DOI]
  5. 5 Experimental acute canine monocytic ehrlichiosis: clinicopathological and immunopathological findings [DOI]
  6. 6 An update on the treatment of canine monocytic ehrlichiosis (Ehrlichia canis) [DOI]
  7. 7 Ehrlichiosis in Dogs: A Comprehensive Review about the Pathogen and Its Vectors with Emphasis on South and East Asian Countries [DOI]
  8. 8 Recent Advances in Determining the Pathogenesis of Canine Monocytic Ehrlichiosis [DOI]
  9. 9 The pathophysiology of canine babesiosis: new approaches to an old puzzle.
  10. 10 Canine monocytic ehrlichiosis: an update
  11. 11 Prognostic indicators for canine monocytic ehrlichiosis [DOI]
  12. 12 Evaluation of the Measurement of Serum Cystatin C by an Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Humans as a Marker of the Glomerular Filtration Rate in Dogs [DOI]
  13. 13 Differentiation of dogs with regenerative and non‐regenerative anaemia on the basis of their red cell distribution width and mean corpuscular volume [DOI]
  14. 14 Therapeutic and Prophylactic Value of Tetracycline in Dogs Infected with the Agent of Tropical Canine Pancytopenia [DOI]
  15. 15 Clinical and hematobiochemical response in canine monocytic ehrlichiosis seropositive dogs of Punjab [DOI]
  16. 16 Evaluation of red blood cell distribution width in dogs with various illnesses.
  17. 17 Bone marrow necrosis in dogs: 34 cases (1996–2004) [DOI]
  18. 18 Oxidative stress in paracetamol-induced pathogenesis: (I). Renal damage.
  19. 19 Erythrocyte and platelet indices in babesiosis of dogs
  20. 20 Autochthonous infection with Ehrlichia Canis and Hepatozoon Canis in dogs from Serbia [DOI]
  21. 21 Hepatic total 3 alpha-hydroxy bile acids concentration and enzyme activities in prednisone-treated dogs.
  22. 22 Canine monocytic ehrlichiosis presenting as acute blindness 36 months after importation into the UK [DOI]
  23. 23 Clinical and haemato-biochemical observations in dogs naturally infected with Canine monocytic ehrlichiosis [DOI]
  24. 24 A Retrospective Study of Dogs Infected with Ehrlichia canis from 2017-2019 in the Thonburi Area of Bangkok Province, Thailand [DOI]
  25. 25 Relationship between ocular abnormalities and hematologic alterations in patients infected naturally by Ehrlichia canis [DOI]
  26. 26 Acute Experimental Canine Ehrlichiosis. II. Sequential Reaction of the Hemic and Lymphoreticular System of Selectively Immunosuppressed Dogs [DOI]
  27. 27 A retrospective study of the clinical hematology and biochemistry of canine ehrlichiosis in an animal hospital population in Bangkok, Thailand [DOI]
  28. 28 Prevalence of Canine Monocytic Ehrlichiosis in Canine Population Across India. [DOI]
  29. 29 A review on canine ehrlichiosis and its zoonotic implications
  30. 30 Clinical history and hematological findings among canines with monocytic ehrlichiosis.
  31. 31 Behavior of red cell distribution width (RDW) in a population of anemic and non-anemic dogs from an ambulatory care unit. [DOI]
  32. 32 Serological Investigation of Canine Ehrlichiosis in Khartoum State, Sudan [DOI]

Cited by 4

Studies on Babesiosis and Ehrlichiosis Induced Anaemia in Dogs from Palampur Valley of Himachal Pradesh

Bavleen Singh, Pardeep Sharma · Himachal journal of agricultural research · 2026

Understanding the Diagnosing of Canine Ehrlichiosis: A Comprehensive Review

Monica E.T. Alcón-Chino, Salvatore G. De-Simone · Exploring the World of Parasites · 2025

Showing 2 of 4 known citations — external sources report more than can currently be individually listed.

Related research

Article metrics

Real usage data collected on this platform.

49

Page views

0

PDF downloads

8

Outbound clicks

4

Citations

Views over time

Views by country

Approximate, from request IP at view time — not citizenship or institution. Countries with fewer than 5 views are grouped as "Other".

Traffic sources

Referring site, by host.

Views and downloads exclude known bots/crawlers. Citations combines this platform's own DOI-resolved index with each external source's own reported total — see Cited by above for individually listed citing works. Last refreshed 0 seconds ago.