Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Puppy with multiple infections including distemper and toxoplasmosis
By Headley, Selwyn Arlington et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc·2013·Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, Brazil·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Concomitant canine distemper, infectious canine hepatitis, canine parvoviral enteritis, canine infectious tracheobronchitis, and toxoplasmosis in a puppy.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 43-day-old mixed-breed puppy experienced convulsions and blindness before sadly passing away. The puppy was found to have multiple serious infections, including canine distemper, parvovirus, and toxoplasmosis, which likely contributed to its rapid decline. Unfortunately, 14 siblings of this puppy also died, indicating a severe outbreak. Tests confirmed the presence of these viruses and parasites, suggesting that the mother may have passed the infections to her puppies. This case highlights the importance of vaccinations and monitoring for signs of illness in young puppies.
People also search for: puppy convulsions and blindness · canine distemper symptoms · puppy parvovirus treatment · toxoplasmosis in dogs · puppy vaccination schedule
Abstract
The concomitant infections of Canine distemper virus (CDV), Canine adenovirus A types 1 (CAdV-1) and 2 (CAdV-2), Canine parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2), and Toxoplasma gondii are described in a 43-day-old mixed-breed puppy. Clinically, there were convulsions and blindness with spontaneous death; 14 siblings of this puppy, born to a 10-month-old dam, which was seropositive (titer: 1,024) for T. gondii, also died. Necropsy revealed unilateral corneal edema (blue eye), depletion of intestinal lymphoid tissue, non-collapsible lungs, congestion of meningeal vessels, and a pale area in the myocardium. Histopathology demonstrated necrotizing myocarditis associated with intralesional apicomplexan protozoa; necrotizing and chronic hepatitis associated with rare intranuclear inclusion bodies within hepatocytes; necrotizing bronchitis and bronchiolitis; interstitial pneumonia associated with eosinophilic intracytoplasmic inclusion bodies within epithelial cells; atrophy and fusion of intestinal villi with cryptal necrosis; and white matter demyelination of the cerebrum and cerebellum associated with intranuclear inclusion bodies within astrocytes. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplified the partial fragments (bp) of the CDV N gene (290 bp), CPV-2c VP2 capsid protein gene (583 bp), and CAdV-1 (508 bp) and CAdV-2 (1,030 bp) E gene from urine and tissue samples. The PCR assays demonstrated that the apicomplexan protozoa observed within several organs contained DNA specific for T. gondii; genotyping revealed T. gondii type III. The findings support the characterization of concomitant infections of CDV, CAdV-1, CAdV-2, CPV-2, and T. gondii in this puppy. Further, seroreactivity to T. gondii of the dam in association with the systemic disease observed in the puppy described herein is suggestive of congenital toxoplasmosis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23293164/