Study on clinical and laboratory diagnostic of Lyme disease in dogs after experimental infection.

Experimental infection was done on 13 dogs, with B. burgdorferi s.l., in the epitzootiological area where Lyme disease in dogs and humans is present. Prior to the experimental infection, dogs in the experiment had no contact with B. burgdorferi, and they were kept in isolation. Serological methods used in the study were complement fixation and ELISA test. Biochemical blood analysis was done, also. The experimental infection of dogs was done with a referent ATCC B. burgdorferi s.l. culture, and with the isolates of B. burgdorferi s.l. previousely gained from Ixodes ricinus ticks collected on selected locations of the observed region in the northern part of Serbia (Vojvodina province). After the experimental infection, clinical symptoms were not seen in dogs and positive serological results were found in 70% of experimentally infected dogs. Immunodiagnostic criteria for the diagnosis of Lyme disease in dogs are established. In dogs without clinical symptoms for Lyme disease, when clarifying the laboratory results, one must have in mind the epizootiological situation of the region and also the possibility of former contact of the dog with B. burgdorferi s.l. For epizootiological surveys, CF can be used as an approximate screening method, with obligatory conformation with ELISA in the case of positive findings.