Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Onchocercosis of an intervertebral joint capsule causing cervical vertebral stenotic myelopathy in a horse.
- Journal:
- Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc
- Year:
- 2006
- Authors:
- Hestvik, Gete et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Veterinary Public Health
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 15-year-old Connemara mare was put to sleep because she was having increasing trouble moving around. After her death, a thorough examination showed swelling in the joint area between two of her neck vertebrae, which was causing a narrowing of the space where the spinal cord runs. Under the microscope, the doctors found damage to the nerve fibers in that part of the spinal cord, along with signs of inflammation and parasites called Onchocerca sp. in the joint capsule. Unfortunately, the treatment options were not effective, leading to her euthanasia.
Abstract
A novel case where onchocercosis was identified as a cause of cervical myelopathy in the horse is described. A 15-year-old Connemara mare was euthanized due to progressive locomotion disturbance. Postmortem examination revealed soft-tissue swelling in the intervertebral joint capsule of C6-7 with narrowing of the vertebral canal. On light microscopy, axonopathy was pronounced in the corresponding segment of the spinal cord. Fibrous tissue and eosinophilic granulomas were found in the joint capsule, together with parasites identified histologically as Onchocerca sp.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16789725/