Transtracheal wash from a puppy with respiratory disease

Vet Clin Pathol. 2006 Dec;35(4):471-3. doi: 10.1111/j.1939-165x.2006.tb00168.x.

Abstract

A 4-month-old, intact male Boxer puppy was presented to the Animal Emergency and Critical Care Services of South Florida because of nasal discharge, dehydration, dyspnea, and coughing. The dog had been diagnosed with intestinal parasites and kennel cough approximately 10 days before presentation. Lateral and ventrodorsal radiographs of the thorax revealed an increased bronchointerstitial pattern throughout the lungs. A transtracheal wash was performed. On cytologic examination of direct, Wright-Giemsa-stained smears, small basophilic coccoid structures (0.3-0.9 microm in diameter) were observed in low to moderate numbers within neutrophils and adherent to epithelial cells. The small size of the organisms raised suspicion for Mycoplasma. Culture of the transtracheal wash fluid resulted in growth of a Mycoplasma sp. The patient was treated with enrofloxacin and amoxicillin/clavulanate and made a full recovery. Recognizing Mycoplasma in transtracheal washes could aid in recommending the appropriate culture media or immunologic techniques, which could result in an accurate diagnosis of mycoplasmosis.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Amoxicillin-Potassium Clavulanate Combination / therapeutic use
  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Dog Diseases / diagnosis*
  • Dog Diseases / pathology
  • Dogs
  • Enrofloxacin
  • Fluoroquinolones / therapeutic use
  • Male
  • Mycoplasma Infections / diagnosis
  • Mycoplasma Infections / drug therapy
  • Mycoplasma Infections / veterinary*
  • Respiratory Tract Infections / diagnosis
  • Respiratory Tract Infections / drug therapy
  • Respiratory Tract Infections / veterinary*
  • Trachea / microbiology

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Fluoroquinolones
  • Enrofloxacin
  • Amoxicillin-Potassium Clavulanate Combination