Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Bartonella infection found in aortic valves of Boxer dogs with heart
By Ohad, Dan G et al.·Published in Veterinary microbiology·2010·Koret School of Veterinary Medicine·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Molecular detection of Bartonella henselae and Bartonella koehlerae from aortic valves of Boxer dogs with infective endocarditis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A Boxer dog with moderate heart problems (subaortic stenosis) died from a serious heart infection called infective endocarditis. Tests showed that the bacteria Bartonella henselae were present in its heart valve. Another Boxer from the same household, which had severe heart issues, was found to have a different strain of the same bacteria, Bartonella koehlerae, in its heart valve as well. Interestingly, the mother of these dogs and a housemate cat also tested positive for Bartonella, indicating that these infections could be linked to their environment. This case highlights the importance of checking for these bacteria in pets with heart infections.
People also search for: Boxer dog heart infection · Bartonella henselae in dogs · symptoms of infective endocarditis in dogs
Abstract
Cardiac aortic valves from five dogs that died from acquired infective endocarditis were retrospectively molecularly screened for Bartonella infection. Identification was carried out using PCR targeting four gene fragments (rpoB, ribC, 16S rRNA and gltA), and the 16S-23S intergenic spacer (ITS). Bartonella henselae DNA was detected in aortic valve tissue from one Boxer dog with moderate subaortic stenosis (SAS). Bartonella koehlerae DNA was detected from the aortic valve of another Boxer dog with severe SAS. The latter dog was both a littermate and a housemate of the dog with the B. henselae infection. Other animals residing at the same household were also screened for Bartonella infection. B. henselae was molecularly detected in a spleen aspirate from the dogs' mother, and isolated and molecularly characterized from another housemate cat. This is the first molecular identification of B. henselae and B. koehlerae, two zoonotic Bartonella species, from valves of dogs with canine infective endocarditis, suggesting their role in the pathogenesis of this disease. Moreover, this is the first report describing the detection of B. koehlerae from dogs.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19716241/