Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Filly with severe diarrhea diagnosed with Lawsonia infection
By Wuersch, K et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary medicine. A, Physiology, pathology, clinical medicine·2006·Institute of Animal Pathology·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Lawsonia intracellularis proliferative enteropathy in a filly.
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 9-month-old Pura Raza Española filly was diagnosed with a disease called proliferative enteropathy (PE), which is caused by a specific type of bacteria known as Lawsonia intracellularis. This filly had a history of severe diarrhea, and tests showed that the bacteria were present in her intestines. This case is notable because it is the first time PE caused by this bacterium has been reported in a horse in Europe. The diagnosis was confirmed through specific laboratory tests.
Abstract
Proliferative enteropathy (PE) caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium Lawsonia intracellularis is a disease of high economic impact in swine worldwide. In most other species the disease occurs as a sporadic infection. This paper reports a PE caused by L. intracellularis in a 9-month-old Pura Raza Española filly with a history of profuse diarrhoea. Pathological lesions consisted of a severe proliferative enteritis associated with argyrophilic bacteria in the apical cytoplasm of proliferating crypt epithelium. Characteristic PCR products confirmed the presumptive diagnosis of L. intracellularis infection. To our knowledge this is the first report of PE in a horse in Europe caused by L. intracellularis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16411902/