Ehrlichia cards infection in dogs can manifest with clinical signs related to bleeding and also commonly causes thrombocytopenia. The exact mechanisms of bleeding and thrombocytopenia are unknown but are thought to be related to processes such as vasculitis and immune and non-immune processes on platelets. It is also unknown why some dogs show signs of bleeding while other dogs do not despite significant thrombocytopenia. It is possible that platelets become activated during infection and/or blood clots become resistant to fibrinolysis which could prevent a bleeding phenotype. The purpose of this study was to assess the platelet indices of activation, platelet function via whole blood impedance platelet aggregometry, percentage of immunoglobulin associated platelets (percent IgG), and thromboelastography (TEG) measurements including velocity curve variables in dogs experimentally infected with E. canis.
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