Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Dog with lung blood clots linked to Blastomyces infection
By McGuire, Nancy C et al.·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·2002·Department of Veterinary Clinical Science, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Pulmonary thromboembolism associated with Blastomyces dermatitidis in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
An 8-year-old male golden retriever was brought to the vet because he was coughing and having trouble breathing. X-rays showed problems in his lungs, and despite tests, the cause remained unclear. Unfortunately, after surgery to remove part of his lung, he passed away a few days later. A thorough examination revealed that he had a serious condition called pulmonary thromboembolism (blood clots in the lungs) linked to an infection from a fungus called Blastomyces dermatitidis. This case highlights how severe infections can lead to unexpected complications in dogs.
People also search for: dog coughing and breathing problems · golden retriever lung infection treatment · pulmonary thromboembolism in dogs
Abstract
An 8-year-old, male castrated golden retriever presented for cough and increased respiratory effort. Radiographs revealed an alveolar pattern in the right caudal lung lobe and an opacity at the carina suspected to be enlarged tracheobronchial lymph nodes. The disease progressed to involve the right middle lung lobe. Cytopathology of a fine-needle aspirate and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were nondiagnostic. Surgical removal of the right caudal lung lobe and biopsy of the perihilar lymph nodes revealed pulmonary thromboembolism and reactive lymph nodes. The dog died several days postoperatively, and necropsy revealed diffuse pulmonary thromboembolism. Additionally, Blastomyces dermatitis organisms were identified in a pyogranulomatous mass surrounding the trachea near the carina. In an extensive literature search, no reports of pulmonary thromboembolism associated with blastomycosis were identified. It is suspected that the inflammation secondary to blastomycosis caused the thromboembolism.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12220026/