Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Lungworm infection found in a kitten in St Kitts
By Wulcan, Judit M et al.·Published in Veterinary parasitology, regional studies and reports·2020·Department of Biomedical Sciences·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: First report of Aelurostrongylus abstrusus in St. Kitts.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A 4-month-old male domestic shorthair kitten in St. Kitts was brought to the vet because he was having trouble breathing, was losing weight, and had a runny nose. After some tests, the vet found that the kitten had a diaphragmatic hernia (a tear in the diaphragm) and signs of pneumonia caused by a lungworm called Aelurostrongylus abstrusus. Unfortunately, the kitten did not survive, but this case highlights the importance of being aware of this type of lungworm in cats in the Caribbean.
People also search for: kitten breathing problems · cat lungworm symptoms · diaphragmatic hernia in cats
Abstract
A 4-month-old intact male domestic shorthair kitten living in St Kitts, West Indies presented with respiratory distress, cachexia, and mucopurulent nasal discharge. Thoracic radiographs revealed a diaphragmatic hernia. The diaphragmatic hernia as well as subpleural pulmonary nodules suspicious for verminous pneumonia were identified during a postmortem examination. Histology showed multifocal to coalescing pyogranulomatous and eosinophilic pneumonia centered on larvae and morulated eggs. The lesion and nematode morphology were consistent with Aelurostrongylus abstrusus. Although Aelurostrongylus abstrusus has been reported worldwide, this is the first report of a metastrongyloid lungworm in cats in St. Kitts and for the West Indies. This case report should increase the awareness of A. abstrusus pneumonia in cats from St. Kitts and other locations in the eastern Caribbean.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32057393/