Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Ultrasound signs of spleen histoplasmosis in 15 cats
By Atiee, Genna et al.·Published in Veterinary radiology & ultrasound : the official journal of the American College of Veterinary Radiology and the International Veterinary Radiology Association·2014·Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences.·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Ultrasonographic appearance of histoplasmosis identified in the spleen in 15 cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 15 cats with enlarged spleens was diagnosed with histoplasmosis, a fungal infection that can affect multiple organs. All the cats showed splenomegaly (enlarged spleen), and most had a specific appearance on ultrasound, with 14 of them having a hypoechoic (darker) spleen. The ultrasound also revealed a mottled appearance in some cases, and one cat had nodules on the spleen. This study suggests that if a cat has an enlarged spleen with these ultrasound characteristics, histoplasmosis should be considered as a possible cause, and a needle sample can help confirm the diagnosis.
People also search for: cat enlarged spleen causes · histoplasmosis in cats treatment · cat spleen ultrasound results
Abstract
Histoplasmosis is the second most common fungal infection reported in the cat. The disseminated form involving lung, liver, lymph nodes, spleen, and bone marrow is a frequent manifestation of the disease. Limited information is available in the literature regarding the ultrasonographic appearance of the spleen in cats with disseminated or splenic histoplasmosis. A retrospective review of splenic ultrasound images from 15 cats confirmed to have histoplasmosis by splenic aspirates was performed. Size, echotexture, echogenicity, margin appearance, presence of nodules, and the overall shape of the spleen were reported in each case. Splenomegaly was documented in all cases (15/15) and a hypoechoic appearance of the spleen was documented in 14/15 of cases. The spleen was diffusely and uniformly affected in 14/15 (six homogenous and eight with a subtle mottled appearance) and had discrete nodules in 1/15 cats. Histoplasmosis should be included in the differential list for an enlarged and hypoechoic spleen in cats with consistent clinical findings. Additionally, ultrasound guided splenic aspirate may be a useful method to obtain a cytology sample for diagnosis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24330135/