Rapid test performance for the diagnosis of canine visceral leishmaniasis using blood, serum, and saliva.

Authors

Daniela Lamattina, Candelaria Sánchez-Fernández, Aníbal Fernando Depasquino, Mariano Alberto Laiño, Fernando Mario Siccardi, Oscar Daniel Salomón

Published in

Veterinary research communications. Volume 51. Issue 1. Oct 29, 2026. Epub Oct 29, 2026.

Abstract

A key aspect of controlling canine visceral leishmaniasis (CVL) is the availability of accurate diagnostic tools capable of reaching most of the population. In endemic areas with socially vulnerable populations, facilitating rapid CVL diagnosis by reducing sampling difficulties and diagnostic costs could provide substantial benefits. This study evaluated the performance of the Kalazar Detect™ Canine Rapid Test for CVL diagnosis using blood, serum, and saliva samples, and compared the results among sample types and with PCR detection in lymph nodes. Samples were collected from 100 dogs. Prevalence detected by the rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) was 21% using blood and serum and 17% using saliva, whereas PCR detected a prevalence of 46%. Agreement between serum and blood-based RDTs was 100%, while comparison between serum/blood and saliva showed a kappa index of 0.87, indicating almost perfect agreement. Using PCR as the reference standard, RDTs on serum and blood showed a sensitivity of 0.39 and specificity of 0.94, whereas saliva-based RDT showed a sensitivity of 0.33 and specificity of 0.96. The low sensitivity of the RDTs currently used by the National Leishmaniasis Program indicate that an additional diagnostic method should be incorporated into CVL surveillance in endemic areas. Nevertheless, our results suggest that saliva may be a suitable sample for the Kalazar Detect Canine Rapid Test, as it is easy to collect, less expensive, and less invasive. To our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate the performance of this RDT for CVL diagnosis using saliva samples.

PMID:
42955157
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 30 Oct 2026.

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