The heartworm is a type of filarial worm, a small thread - like worm, that causes filariasis. (en.wikipedia.org)
While medications currently exist to treat lymphatic filariasis and onchocerciasis, the two main diseases caused by filarial nematodes, the drugs are insufficient to eliminate the diseases by 2020 and researchers project that resistance will arise to some of the drugs. (sciencedaily.com)
Point - of - care quantification of blood - borne filarial parasites with a mobile phone microscope (stm.sciencemag.org)