Feline leishmaniasis – review

Abstract

Leishmaniases are diseases caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania, and are a major challenge to public health. While dogs and various wild species serve as reservoirs of the protozoan, domestic and wild cats can also be infected. The number of diagnosed cases of feline leishmaniasis has recently grown in endemic areas, suggesting that this species can no longer be considered an unusual host of Leishmania sp. There was a great advance in laboratory techniques in recent years, which may have contributed to increasing the number of positive diagnoses. Thus, it is necessary to understand the real role of the cat in the epidemiology of the disease and clarify whether this species can behave like a protozoan reservoir. The purpose of this review is to gather important information about the disease in domestic cats, such as epidemiology, clinical signs and diagnosis.