Survival time and prognostic factors in canine leishmaniosis in a non-endemic country treated with a two-phase protocol including initial allopurinol monotherapy.

Background: Leishmania infantum is an intracellular protozoan parasite which is endemic in countries of the Mediterranean Basin. Leishmaniosis is increasingly diagnosed in non-endemic areas due to the relocation of dogs from endemic areas and the travel of dogs to and from these areas. The prognosis of leishmaniosis in these dogs may differ from that of those in endemic areas.