Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
MRSA infection causing head and neck swelling in pet rabbit
By Loncaric, Igor & Künzel, Frank·Published in Veterinary Dermatology·2013·Department of Pathobiology Institute for Bacteriology, Mycology and Hygiene University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Austria·View original on Crossref →
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Original publication title: Sequence type 398 meticillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection in a pet rabbit
- Species:
- rabbit
Plain-English summary
A pet dwarf rabbit was brought to the vet because it had recurring swellings on its head and neck. Tests showed the rabbit had an infection caused by a type of bacteria called Staphylococcus aureus, which was resistant to common antibiotics (known as MRSA). The rabbit was treated with a medication called rifampicin for two weeks. After about two and a half weeks, the rabbit was back to normal and follow-up tests showed no signs of the infection.
People also search for: rabbit head swelling treatment · MRSA in rabbits · pet rabbit infection antibiotics
Abstract
BackgroundMeticillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a frequent pathogen of humans and many animal species, and has become established as a veterinary pathogen.Case reportIn this case report we describe an MRSA infection in a dwarf rabbit, treatment of the infection and, subsequently, the genetic analysis of the isolated strain. The pet rabbit was presented to an animal hospital due to recurrent swellings on the head and on the neck. Bacteriological examination yielded Staphylococcus aureus, which was resistant to β‐lactam antibiotics. The isolate was confirmed as an MRSA by mecA PCR, Panton‐Valentine leukocidin (PVL) negative, and typed as multilocus sequence type (ST)398/staphylococcal protein A (spa) type t011/staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) type SCCmecIVa. The rabbit was treated with rifampicin for 2 weeks. After 2.5 weeks the rabbit was clinically normal and control swabs were negative for MRSA.Conclusions and clinical importanceThis study is the first to report MRSA in a rabbit in Austria. This study contributes to the growing evidence that MRSA ST398 could be isolated from a variety of animals.
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Search related cases →Original publication on Crossref: https://doi.org/10.1111/vde.12023