Summary Dirofilaria immitis (heartworm) is a zoonotic and an emerging disease, expanding in Europe. In Bulgaria, the presence of the parasite has been described in many regions. However, canine heartworm has hardly been evaluated in the capital of the country and, therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and distribution of canine heartworm in Sofia. Eighty stray dogs from the city of Sofia and the metropolitan area were analysed for circulating D. immitis antigens. The prevalence was 31.25 %, being 34.7 % in the metropolitan area and 25.8 % in the city of Sofia. The current results are among the highest reported in the country. This could be due to the lack of prophylactic measures against infection in these dogs, but also to the spread of D. immitis into non-endemic countries. Stray dogs may act as an important reservoir of heartworm being a risk for client-owned animals and for the development of pulmonary dirofilariosis in inhabitants. The results show the need to establish further epidemiological studies and prophylactic campaigns for stray and client-owned animals, as well as to create awareness campaigns about the severity and importance of this disease for both animals and humans.

中文翻译：

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索非亚（保加利亚）的流浪狗可能是心丝虫（Dirofilaria immitis）的重要宿主

摘要 恶丝虫（心丝虫）是一种人畜共患的新发疾病，正在欧洲蔓延。在保加利亚，许多地区都描述了这种寄生虫的存在。然而，该国首都几乎没有对犬心丝虫进行评估，因此，本研究的目的是评估索非亚犬心丝虫的患病率和分布。对来自索非亚市和大都市区的 80 只流浪狗进行了循环粗线虫抗原的分析。患病率为 31.25%，其中大都市区为 34.7%，索非亚市为 25.8%。目前的结果是该国报告的最高结果之一。这可能是由于缺乏针对这些狗感染的预防措施，也可能是由于粗线犬传播到非流行国家。流浪狗可能是心丝虫的重要储存库，对客户拥有的动物和居民患肺丝虫病构成风险。结果表明，需要针对流浪动物和客户拥有的动物开展进一步的流行病学研究和预防活动，以及开展关于这种疾病对动物和人类的严重性和重要性的认识活动。