Aelurostrongylosis

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The Aelurostrongylose is a parasitic disease in cats caused by the infestation of the lung worm Aelurostrongylus abstrusus is triggered. Affected cats can remain asymptomatic, but severe pneumonia with fatal outcome is also possible. Treatment is carried out with anthelmintics .

Occurrence

The disease occurs worldwide. In Germany, the parasite was detected in faeces examinations in 0.5 to 1% of cats, in endemic areas infestation rates of up to 50% can occur. In addition to domestic cats , European wildcats also get sick .

Whether the larval evidence in other wild felids such as lynxes , lions , bengal cats or cheetahs really can be assigned to A. abstrusus or to other lungworm species such as Troglostrongylus spp. is not fully understood. The published size information on the larvae in Wildfeliden can speak for other species or for a specific size adjustment to other hosts.

Disease origin and clinical picture

Aelurostrongylus abstrusus is up to an inch long. Infection occurs through the ingestion of snails colonized with larval stage 3, which represent an obligatory intermediate host in the development of the parasite. The spotted garden snail seems to play a special role here , which is also bred for food purposes and has spread far beyond the original habitat (Mediterranean area) through plants and vegetables. Infection can occur not only through the direct ingestion of snails, but also via stack hosts, i.e. animals that have previously consumed such snails. Amphibians, reptiles, birds and rodents can be used as stack hosts. A. abstrusus settled in the cat through lymphatic vessels , the small bronchi and alveoli . The female worm also lays the eggs there. The prepatency period - the period from infection to excretion of the first larvae - is around six weeks. The worms and eggs cause granulomatous pneumonia . This can be complicated by secondary bacterial infections .

The clinical picture is very variable, it ranges from completely symptom-free to fatal courses. The latter occur mainly in young animals and animals with a weakened immune system. Possible symptoms are coughing , sneezing, nasal discharge, shortness of breath , increased breathing rate and general symptoms such as fever , fatigue and weight loss. In the blood can leukocytosis , eosinophilia , anemia and albumin deficiency occur.

Diagnosis and treatment

In the chest x-ray , alveolar lung changes dominate, later bronchial and interstitial lung drawings. The detection of larvae in the faeces using larval migration methods is suitable for diagnosis . It should be noted that the faeces that are as fresh as possible are examined and that larvae detection is only possible after the prepatent period has ended. Detection in lung lavage samples or lung biopsies is more meaningful . Serological and molecular biological detection by means of PCR of an infection is also possible.

Treatment is with anthelmintics such as fenbendazole , ivermectin , selamectin , moxidectin , milbemycin oxime , eprinomectin or emodepside . In severe cases, the administration of prednisolone and antibiotics such as doxycycline to treat secondary infections may also be indicated. With timely therapy, the treatment prospects are good.

As a preventive measure, the regular administration of spot-on formulations based on emodepside, eprinomectin, moxidectin or selamectin can greatly reduce the development of the disease and the excretion of larvae.

literature

  • HM Elsheikha et al .: Updates on feline aelurostrongylosis and research priorities for the next decade. In: Parasites & vectors. Volume 9, number 1, 07 2016, p. 389, doi : 10.1186 / s13071-016-1671-6 , PMID 27387914 , PMC 4936016 (free full text) (review).
  • MG Pennisi et al .: Lung worm disease in cats caused by Aelurostrongylus abstrusus . In: Tijdschrift voor diergeneeskunde. Volume 120, Issue 9, 1995, ISSN  0040-7453 , pp. 263-266. PMID 7754502
  • Stefan Pachnicke and Sonja Wolken: Feline aelurostrongylosis - much more than “just” a verminous pneumonia. In: Kleintiermedizin 3-2017, pp. 2–7.
  • Binke Dürr: Fine-needle aspiration of the lungs in two cats with aelurostrongylus abstrusus infection. In: Kleintierpraxis 54 (2009), pp. 88–92.