Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Budgerigar with a uric acid stone blocking its crop
By Wiggin, Perri & Hoefer, Heidi L·Published in Journal of avian medicine and surgery·2024·Long Island Veterinary Specialists, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Uric Acid Ingluviolith in a Budgerigar ().
- Species:
- bird
Plain-English summary
A female budgerigar was brought to the vet because she was intermittently regurgitating. The vet found a foreign body in her crop, which is the part of a bird's digestive system. X-rays and a CT scan revealed a large stone made of uric acid, which was causing her symptoms. The vet performed surgery to remove the stone, and it was determined that stress-related behaviors, like eating her own feathers, might have contributed to its formation. After the surgery, the bird's condition improved.
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Abstract
This clinical report describes an adult, female budgerigar () diagnosed with an ingluviolith. The patient presented for intermittent regurgitation, and a palpable foreign body was present in the crop. Radiographs showed a radiopaque foreign body, and computed tomography showed an approximately 16 × 12 mm (length 3 width) structure in the crop with a soft tissue and focally mineralized center and a 2-3 mm-thick mineral-attenuating shell. An ingluviotomy was performed. The stone was first analyzed using polarized optical crystallography, a method that cannot analyze uric acid salts, and was incorrectly deemed a cystine calculus. The calculus was then analyzed using infrared spectroscopy and x-ray diffractometry and was confirmed to be a shell of subcrystalline to monoclinic crystals of anhydrous uric acid (CHNO) encrusting aggregates of numerous, threadlike, protein-based fibers. This case presents new information regarding avian ingluviolithiasis. The large size of the calculus indicates formation in the crop, and coprophagia linked to stress is thought to be the potential reason for urate and feather ingestion.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39405216/