Kangaroo's Lumpy Jaw Disease
The Lumpy Jaw Disease Kangaroo , also known as necrobacillosis complex, stomatitis diphteroidea or simply kangaroo disease , is mainly in captive kangaroos occurring inflammatory syndrome , which affects mainly in the head and neck area and there purulent necrosis causes. It is the most common and costly kangaroo disease in zoological gardens.
Causes and pathogens
Lumpy jaws can be triggered by a number of different opportunistic pathogens that enter through wounds in the lining of the mouth of the affected kangaroos. Accordingly, these are mostly mixed infections from several primary pathogens such as Fusobacterium necrophorum and Actinomyces spec. and more rarely Bacteroides spec. and Nocardia macropodidarum . Other bacteria settle as secondary pathogens, especially Arcanobacterium pyogenes , Escherichia coli , Pseudomonads , Proteus vulgaris and various streptococci and micrococci .
The inflammation is promoted primarily by stress factors, for example by trapping or by overpopulation of the enclosures ("overcrowding"). Vitamin deficiency in vitamins A and C and malnutrition with a high proportion of proteins and a low proportion of roughage , which lead to over-acidification (metabolic acidosis ) and micro-lesions of the oral mucosa and the tooth sockets, are additional reinforcing factors . These become inflamed, the inflammation can spread to the underlying bone and spread there.
Symptoms
Serious jaw inflammation is often only recognized at an advanced stage, and in many animals the diagnosis is only made after the animal has died. The first signs are a strong, putrid, carious halitosis ( foetor ex ore ) as well as chewing and swallowing difficulties, which are accompanied by frequent shaking of the head. There is also an increased flow of saliva and swelling of the affected half of the face caused by the inflammation. As the inflammation progresses, nasal discharge increases and conjunctivitis of the eye ( conjunctivitis ) occurs. In the very advanced stage, the animal becomes apathetic and becomes increasingly emaciated, fistulas and abscesses form in the mouth and the masticatory muscles .
The pathological-anatomical changes in the course of the inflammation include strongly festering and necrotic lesions of the oral mucosa, acute inflammation of the gums ( gingivitis ), inflammation of the tooth cavity ( alveolitis ) and sinusitis ( sinusitis ). As the disease progresses, the bone marrow becomes inflamed ( osteomyelitis ) and the branches of the lower jaw bone decompose ( osteolysis ).
In addition to the jaw inflammation, this often leads to other diseases that are caused by the pathogens being spread to other organ systems. These are mainly pneumonia (secondary bronchopneumonia) or inflammation of the meninges ( meningitis ) via the optic nerve (optic nerve), the liver ( hepatitis ) and other areas of the gastrointestinal tract .
diagnosis
The diagnosis is made primarily through the changes in behavior of the affected animal and the recognizable symptoms of the disease. Pathogens can be identified via a swab of the oral mucosa and pus samples , but the detection of this is technically complex and has only limited informative value, since many of the potential pathogens also belong to the normal oral flora of the kangaroo and can accordingly also be detected in healthy animals.
Treatment and prevention
The treatment is primarily carried out by surgical removal of the soft-tissue granulomas and by broad-spectrum treatment with antibiotics , before which an antibiogram is usually carried out due to the large spectrum of potential pathogens . In most cases, combinations of penicillin , tetracyclines and streptomycin are used. Also Dimetridazol and tylosin have been used successfully. However, the prognosis is usually unfavorable due to the inflammation, which is usually very advanced at the time of diagnosis.
For prevention, keeping kangaroos requires low stocking densities and consistent keeping hygiene. In addition, there is adequate nutrition through feed with a high proportion of roughage and sufficient vitamins A and C.
Epidemiology
The kangaroo disease is mainly observed in captive kangaroos and is the most common and lossy kangaroo disease in zoos. However, it has also been observed in animals in the wild. An accumulation was found above all in the red giant kangaroo ( Macropus rufus ), the disease is less common in the Bennett's kangaroo ( Macropus rufogriseus ) and in the gray giant kangaroos ( Macropus giganteus and Macropus fuliginosus ).
literature
- Reinhard Göltenboth, Heinz-Georg Klös: Diseases of zoo and wild animals Blackwell Wissenschafts-Verlag, Berlin 1995; Pages 373-375 ISBN 3-8263-3019-6
- Michael Asperger: On the etiology and control of lumpy jaw disease in kangaroos. Dissertation at the Veterinary Medicine Faculty of the University of Leipzig, October 13, 2003 ( full text , short version )
- Terence J. Dawson: Kangaroos. Cornell University Press 1995. ( Google Book Search )