A 6-year-old neutered female cat was examined for chronic and progressive pelvic limb ataxia that progressed to non-ambulatory paraparesis over 1 month. Haematological and serum analyses were mainly within normal ranges. Thoracic and abdominal radiographs did not reveal any morphological abnormalities. Magnetic resonance imaging investigation of the thoraco-lumbar spine demonstrated a well-defined, extradural mass that extended into the epidural space from the L2 to L3 vertebral bodies and expanded in the L2 to L3 left intervertebral foramen. During surgery, a long, narrow, white parasite that was weakly adherent to the phlogistic epidural fat tissue was gently removed from the spinal canal. Histological examination of the pathological tissue supported a diagnosis of epidural steatitis surrounding a female adult Dirofilaria immitis. This is a novel case of natural D immitis infection with spinal localisation in a cat, well documented with magnetic resonance investigation, and cytological and histological examinations, introducing a novel differential diagnosis for extradural spinal masses in cats.
Autori interni: | |
Autori: | FAVOLE P; CAUDURO A; OPRENI M; ZANZANI S; ALBONICO F; MANFREDI M; CANTILE C; LORENZO V |
Titolo: | Epidural dirofilariosis in a paraparetic cat: case report of Dirofilaria immitis infection. |
Anno del prodotto: | 2013 |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI): | 10.1177/1098612X13492740 |
Appare nelle tipologie: | 1.1 Articolo in rivista |