Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Amphotericin B water treatment sometimes fails for budgerigar yeast
By Baron, H R et al.·Published in Australian veterinary journal·2020·School of Veterinary Science, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Inconsistent efficacy of water-soluble amphotericin B for the treatment of Macrorhabdus ornithogaster in a budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus) aviary.
- Species:
- bird
Plain-English summary
A group of 16 budgerigars was treated with a water-soluble medication called amphotericin B to combat a gut infection caused by Macrorhabdus ornithogaster. After 10 days of treatment, 11 birds stopped showing signs of the infection, but 5 continued to shed the bacteria. Even after a second round of treatment, some birds that initially tested negative started shedding the bacteria again, and a few birds sadly died during the study. This suggests that the treatment may not be reliable for completely eliminating the infection in budgerigars.
People also search for: budgerigar gut infection treatment · amphotericin B for birds · why is my budgie sick
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of a commercially available in-water amphotericin B treatment for Macrorhabdus ornithogaster. DESIGN: Clinical treatment trial. METHODS: Faecal shedding of 16 naturally infected budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulatus) was monitored while they were being treated using in-water amphotericin B, as per the manufacturer's instructions, for 10 days. Any birds that remained positive after 10 days received a further 10 day course of treatment. All birds were rechecked 16 days after the end of the second treatment period. RESULTS: At the conclusion of treatment, 11 birds had stopped shedding M. ornithogaster, and 5 birds were still shedding. Sixteen days after the conclusion of the second treatment period, four birds that were negative after 10 days of treatment were shedding again, and two of the birds that were treated for 20 days were shedding. In addition, one bird from each treatment group died after treatment and before follow-up testing. CONCLUSION: These findings represent a 36% treatment failure, suggesting that treatment with the commercially available, water-soluble amphotericin B has inconsistent efficacy against M. ornithogaster in some budgerigars in Australia and is not effective for eliminating it from budgerigar aviaries.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32115681/