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Leukemia in Dogs N. Chand1, C.S. Randhawa, R.S. Singh, S.K. Uppal, N.D. Singh and B.K. Bansal Department of Veterinary Medicine, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India. (Received : 25-06-2012;
Leukemias are malignant neoplasms that originate from hematopoetic precursor cells in the bone marrow. Lymphoid leukemia is more common in males than females and highest incidence has been reported in German shepherd breed of dogs (Leifer and Matus, 1989). The present article reports two cases of leukemia in female dogs of Gaddi and Doberman breeds. Case History and Observations
A 6 year old Gaddi female dog weighing around 35 kg was presented at Teaching Veterinary Hospital of institute with the history of anorexia, weight loss, weakness, exercise intolerance and occasional vomition and diarrhea since last 7 days. Physical examination revealed emaciation, pyrexia (l03.6oF), pale mucus membrane, tachypnea, tachycardia, mild generalized lymph node enlargement and splenomegaly on abdominal palpation. Hematological examination revealed hemoglobin- 8g/dl, total leucocyte count- 1,26000/µl (reference range 6000-17000/ µl), lymphocytes-113400/µl (reference range 1000-4800/ µl), Neutrophils-3780/ µl, monocytes-8820/ µl while no basophils and eosinophils were detected. Serum biochemical findings were Aspartate amino transferase85U/L, Alanine amino transferase-37 U/L, Alkaline phosphatase-54 U/L, Bilirubin- 1.0 mg/ dl, Blood urea nitrogen-8.0mg/dl, Creatinine-1.0 mg/dl and Calcium- 8.4mg/dl. Blood smear was found negative for any hemoprotozoan parasite. Radiography and ultrasonography of abdomen showed splenomegaly and normal liver. A 7 year old Doberman female dog weighing 25 kg was admitted to College Veterinary Hospital with the history of loss of appetite, weight loss, hind quarter lameness, 1
Corresponding author : Email :
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Accepted : 06-07-2013)
occasional vomition and diarrhea since 10 days. On clinical examination dog had fever (l04.8oF), pale mucus membrane, heart rate-92/minute, respiration rate- 40/minute, edema of legs and mild generalized lymph node enlargement. Hematological findings were hemoglobin- 7.4 g/ dl, total leucocyte count-1,60000/ µl (reference range 6000-17000/µl), lymphocytes-156800/ µl (reference range 1000-4800/ µl), Neutrophils3200/ µl, while monocytes basophils and eosinophils could not be detected. Serum biochemistry revealed Aspartate amino transferase-83U/L, Alanine amino transferase-39 U/L, Bilirubin0.47 mg/dl, Blood urea nitrogen-12.3 mg/dl, Creatinine-0.72 mg/dl, Sodium-148mmol/L, Potassium-3.40mrnol/L, Chloride-l08mrnol/L and Calcium- 8.4mg/dl. Blood smear was negative for hemoprotozoan. Radiography and ultrasonography revealed spleen enlargement and normal liver. Lymph node aspirate and bone marrow biopsy examination from both the dogs revealed large number of immature lymphocytes which had the same morphology as those seen in peripheral blood. Treatment and Discussion
The dogs were treated with vincrystin @0.025 mg/kg bw once weekly, prednisolone @ 1mg/kg bw twice daily orally along with dextrose normal saline, antiemetic, liver tonic. The dogs had no response to treatment and died on 7th and 12th day of start of treatment. Based on hematological examination, mild generalized lymph node enlargement, presence of large number of immature lymphocytes in peripheral blood, lymph node and bone marrow biopsy smear, the disease was diagnosed as leukemia. The clinical findings observed
The Indian Veterinary Journal (October, 2014)
N. Chand et al.
in the present cases were similar to those reported by earlier workers (Henry et al., 1996, Leifer and Matus, 1989, Gopal Krishna, 1993). Lameness was observed in Doberman dog only, which might be due to subperiosteal leukemic infiltration. Hepatomegaly was not seen in any of the dog in our study however hepatomegaly has been recorded earlier (Couto, 1985). The age of the dogs in present cases were 6 and 7 years which was in agreement with Jain et al., (1986) who reported highest incidence of leukemia in the age group of 5 to 9 years. Regarding hematological changes marked leucocytosis, anemia and cytopenia were observed in both the animals, which could be attributed to heavy infiltration of bone marrow with neoplastic lymphocytes. Liver and renal function test and other biochemical indices were found within normal range in these dogs; however hypercalcemia, hyperkalemia, increased level of hepatic serum
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enzymes and blood urea nitrogen has been reported earlier (Henry et al., loc. cit). Summary
Leukemia was diagnosed in two female dogs of Gaddi and Doberman breeds on the basis of clinical findings, hematology, lymph node and bone marrow biopsy examination. Clinicohematological and biochemical findings in leukemia has been discussed. References Couto, C.G. (1985) J. AmVet. Med. Assoc.,186 : 681. Gopal Krishna (1993) lndian Vet. J., 70 :769. Henry, C.J., Lanevschi, A., Marks, S.L. Beyer, J.C., Nitschelm, S.H. and Barnes, S. (1996) J. Am Vet. Med. Assoc., 208 : 237. Jain, N.C. (l986) Shalm’s veterinary hematology 4th edition, Lea and Febiger, Philadelphia, USA. Leifer, C.E. and Matus, R.E. (1989) J. Am Vet. Med. Assoc., 189 : 214.
Indian Vet. J., October 2014, 91 (10) : 113 - 115
Detection of Staphylococcus Hyicus Associated with Cases of Greasy Pig Disease by Polymerase Chain Reaction and their Antibiogram S. Rajkhowa, S.R. Pegu1, D.K. Sarma, C. Kalita and J.P. Das National Research Centre on Pig, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Rani, Guwahati - 781 131, Assam, India. (Received : 17-10-2013;
Abstract
S. hyicus could be detected in 87.82% piglets that showed the clinical signs similar to those of greasy pig disease. Highest prevalence was observed in piglets of 1-15 days old in comparison to piglets of older age groups. The isolates of S. hyicus showed greater susceptibility to antimicrobials such as doxycycline, chloramphenicol, enrofloxacin, gentamicin, co-trimaxazole, norfloxacin and sulphadiazine 1
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Accepted : 22-01-2014)
in comparison to other commonly used antimicrobials tested in the study. Key words : Antibiogram, Greasy pig disease, PCR.
Greasy pig disease is an acute generalized disease of pigs caused by Staphylococcus hyicus (S. hyicus) and is characterized by exfoliation of the skin, excessive sebaceous secretion and the formation of a brownish coat of exudates that may cover the entire body. Morbidity can be up to 90% in infected herds
The Indian Veterinary Journal (October, 2014)
