Canine dirofilariosis is a life-threatening parasitic disease that is increasingly reported worldwide. Once diagnosed the main\ntreatment goals are to improve the animal�s clinical condition and to eliminate all life stages of the parasite with minimal\npost treatment side effects. This can be achieved through mechanical, surgical, or chemo therapeutical approaches.Currently,manual\nextraction is the preferred method to remove adult heartworms due to its diminished invasiveness, reduced damage to the vascular\nendothelium, and shortened anaesthesia duration. However, it remains an expensive technique that can be highly traumatic. To\naddress this issue, a nontraumatic homemade catheter-guided snare was developed for heart worm removal by adapting and folding\na 0.014-inch coronary wire (BMW, Abbott Vascular). Transvenous heart worm extraction was performed on a dog severely infected\nwith adult heartworms by inserting the modified snare into a 6-F Judkins right coronary guiding catheter BMW (Cordis) and\nadvancing it into the right ventricle under fluoroscopic guidance. Fifteen adult specimens of Dirofilaria immitis were successfully\nextracted from the pulmonary artery and right ventricle without complications. To assure the death of both larvae and adults,\npostoperative treatment was successfully managed using ivermectin, doxycycline, and melarsomine, with no recurrence after\nsurgery.
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