Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How to monitor treatment and remission in dogs with lung fungal
By Jaffey, Jared A et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2026·Department of Specialty Medicine, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: A treatment monitoring protocol to determine clinical remission in dogs with pulmonary coccidioidomycosis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 31 dogs diagnosed with pulmonary coccidioidomycosis, a respiratory infection caused by a fungus, were monitored over a year to see how well they responded to antifungal treatment. Owners reported improvements in their dogs' symptoms, and blood tests showed a decrease in infection markers. Most dogs achieved remission within about 8 months, but some experienced a relapse after treatment. This study suggests that regular monitoring can help determine when dogs are recovering from this condition.
People also search for: dog coughing treatment · pulmonary coccidioidomycosis in dogs · antifungal treatment for dogs · dog respiratory infection symptoms
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Pulmonary coccidioidomycosis (PC) is a common cause of respiratory tract disease in dogs from endemic regions, but evidence-based guidelines for monitoring treatment and determining remission are lacking. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: Describe temporal changes in clinical signs, antibody serology, and thoracic radiographs in dogs with PC, and evaluate the performance of a treatment monitoring protocol to determine clinical remission. ANIMALS: Thirty-one client-owned dogs with newly diagnosed PC. METHODS: A prospective, cohort study. Dogs were examined at diagnosis (T0) and once every 3 months (T1-T4) until remission or for a maximum of 12 months. Clinical status was assessed using an owner-completed visual analog scale (VAS) representative of the 24 hours and 7 days that preceded the visit. RESULTS: The 24-hour and 7-day VAS scores increased (ie, clinical signs improved) from T0 (24-hour: mean, 95% confidence interval [CI]; 42.3 mm, 35.0-50.2; 7-day: 39.6 mm, 31.9-47.3) to T1 (24-hour, 85.7 mm, 78.1-93.3, 7-day, 84.4 mm, 76.8-92.1, P < .001) with minimal change thereafter. Immunoglobulin G titers decreased from T0 (median, interquartile range [IQR]; 1:16, 1:4-1:32) to T1 (1:2, 1:1-1:8, P < .001) without significant changes thereafter. Eighty-four percent (26/31) of dogs achieved remission in a mean of 258.9 days (SD, 108.9), which occurred at T1 (13%, 4/31), T2 (23%, 7/31), T3 (32%, 10/31), and T4 (16%, 5/31). Relapse occurred in 15% (4/26) of dogs. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Most dogs with PC are expected to achieve remission within 6-9 months of starting antifungal treatment, and relapse is not uncommon.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41742561/