Causal Agent Investigation and Treatment of Dogs Diagnosed with Discospondylitis in a <i>Brucella canis</i> Endemic Region

oleh: Eileen M. Donoghue, Sara D. Lawhon, Sharon C. Kerwin, Nick D. Jeffery

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2024-06-01

Deskripsi

Discospondylitis is a well-recognized disease in dogs, but the relative prevalence of causal infectious agents and efficiency of relevant diagnostic tests are not well-established. Medical record review identified 117 dogs diagnosed with discospondylitis in our clinic over a 5-year period. In 32 dogs, discospondylitis was diagnosed as an incidental imaging finding; 24 of these dogs had concomitant neoplasia. A likely causal infection was identified in 45 of the remaining 85 dogs in which blood and urine cultures, serology for <i>Brucella</i> spp., and galactomannan fungal antigen testing were recommended. Ten dogs were diagnosed with <i>Brucella canis</i>, and ten were diagnosed with suspected fungal infection. Brucella suis serology was negative in all 35 dogs that were tested. Blood cultures were positive in 28 of 71 (39%) tested dogs, and urine culture was positive in 12 of 79 (15%). Cultures were positive from the lesion site of four of eight dogs that underwent surgery and one of the five dogs that underwent image-guided lesion sample collection. Subluxation secondary to discospondylitis was stabilized with metallic implants in four dogs. A similar proportion of known satisfactory treatment outcomes at last follow-up were recorded in dogs that had suspected fungal disease, other bacterial infections, or were <i>Brucella</i>-positive and in those dogs with imaging diagnosis only, although some individuals continued to receive anti-microbial agents or showed recurrent signs. These data support the value of blood culture in discospondylitis and suggest a relatively high prevalence of infection with <i>Brucella</i> spp. and suspected fungal infection.