Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Vegetative endocarditis causing weakness and leg paralysis
By Steinagel, Amanda et al.·Published in Journal of avian medicine and surgery·2019·Animal Medical Center, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Vegetative Endocarditis due toin an Umbrella Cockatoo ().
- Species:
- bird
Plain-English summary
A 15-year-old female umbrella cockatoo was brought to the vet because she had been experiencing intermittent cloacal prolapse (a condition where the cloaca, or vent, protrudes) for a year. The owner managed the prolapse by manually pushing the tissue back in, but after a third vet visit, the bird suddenly became weak, stopped eating, and had trouble using her right leg. Despite receiving supportive care, her condition worsened, leading to respiratory arrest, and unfortunately, she passed away. A postmortem exam revealed she had vegetative endocarditis, which is an infection of the heart, likely caused by bacteria introduced during the manual handling of her prolapsed tissue.
People also search for: cockatoo cloacal prolapse treatment · bird respiratory arrest causes · endocarditis in birds
Abstract
A 15-year-old, female cockatoo () was presented with a history of intermittent cloacal prolapse of 1-year duration. After each prolapse, the owner would digitally reduce the distended cloacal tissue within approximately 12-24 hours, for short-term resolution. The cockatoo was examined 3 times over a 7-month period and received supportive care with leuprolide acetate, behavioral modification, and diet change. After the third examination, the owner decided to proceed with a surgical cloacopexy. Five days after the last examination and before the procedure was scheduled, the cockatoo was reexamined for acute onset of weakness, anorexia, lethargy, and right-leg paresis. Despite supportive treatment, the cockatoo's clinical condition declined, and it went into respiratory arrest. Resuscitative efforts, including manual ventilation and cardiovascular support, were unsuccessful, and the bird died. Results of postmortem examination revealed vegetative endocarditis with intralesional bacteria cultured as, right-hindlimb myonecrosis, hepatitis, and nephritis. We suspect that the source of the hematogenousinfection in this cockatoo was translocation from the owner's skin from the repeated manual manipulation and replacement of the prolapsed cloacal tissue.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31833311/