Comparison Between a Minimally Invasive Capillary Blood Sampling Technique and Venipuncture for Core Vaccine Antibody...

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Immunology
• Point-of-Care Diagnostics
• Canine Infectious Diseases

Background:

• International guidelines recommend personalized vaccination strategies for dogs based on antibody titers.
• Traditional venipuncture for antibody titration can be difficult in certain canine patients.
• Novel minimally invasive sampling methods are needed to facilitate routine antibody testing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the clinical agreement of a novel ear-prick capillary blood sampling technique for canine core vaccine antibody titration.
• To compare the reliability of ear-prick sampling with traditional venipuncture for antibody testing.
• To assess the feasibility of this technique for personalized vaccination monitoring in dogs.

Main Methods:

• Paired blood samples were collected from 55 dogs via venipuncture and ear-prick.
• Antibody titers for CPV-2, CDV, and CAdV-1 were measured using a semi-quantitative point-of-care kit.
• The ear-prick procedure was optimized using different lancet gauges (28G and 21G).

Main Results:

• No significant statistical differences were observed between venipuncture and ear-prick sampling methods (p > 0.05).
• High clinical concordance rates were achieved with the optimized 21G ear-prick technique: 95.3% for CPV-2, 90.7% for CDV, and 100% for CAdV-1.
• Perfect agreement was found for CPV-2 and CAdV-1, and moderate agreement for CDV, indicating reliability.

Conclusions:

• The ear-prick technique using a 21G lancet is a validated, minimally invasive alternative to venipuncture for canine antibody titration.
• This method simplifies vaccine booster decisions and enables personalized immunization monitoring.
• The technique is suitable for diverse veterinary settings, including pediatric and shelter medicine, due to minimal blood volume requirements.