Fungal dermatitis by Scopulariopsis brevicaulisin Guinea pig (Cavia porcellus)

Fungal dermatitis is classified into superficial, cutaneous and subcutaneous mycoses. However, the incidence of fungal dermatitis in small mammals is relatively low. Among rodents guinea pig the most affected specie, however it usually has an asymptomatic pattern. The present text reports an unusual case of fungal dermatitis in Caviaporcelluscaused by Scopulariopsis brevicaulis. The animal was received with complaint of alteration of coat around the neck, as well as report of incorrect feeding management. During the physical examination the presence of a dry and crusty dermatitis, negative on fluorescence test of wood. Samples of blood, skin, scabs and hair were collected for parasitic and mycological analysis. The hematological evaluation showed only a discrete eosinophilia; no ectoparasites were observed, but it was noticed the presence of Scopulariopsis brevicaulis. The animal underwent terbinafine and griseofulvin protocol, with total regression of the lesions after 30 days. S. brevicaulis is an unusual geophilic fungus causing animal mycosis, presenting more pathological reports in human mycoses, thus, representing a zoonotic potential. According to the clinical findings and results obtained from mycology assay, it was diagnosed dermatitis by Scopulariopsis brevicaulis, secondary to nutritional deficiency. The combined use of topical terbinafine with systemic griseofulvin was efficient in the treatment. Finally, it was recommended a dietary correction.

A case of acute limb ischemia

Thromboembolism is a well-recognized complication of hematological malignancy. The incidence of symptomatic thrombosis at diagnosis is relatively low in AML (acute myeloid leukemia) patients, though its incidence increases on treatment with anthracyclines. We reported a case of 69 year old female with T2DM who presented with DVT and later on acute limb ischemia of the same lower limb. On hematological evaluation, she had leukocytosis and thrombocytopenia. Further evaluation revealed AML. Thromboembolism as a rare presentation of AML in adults with leukemic hyperleukocytosis has seldom been reported. In the absence of clear guidelines, early diagnosis and management are desirable.

Carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10, 11-epoxide therapeutic drug monitoring and biochemical and hematological evaluation in bipolar disorder outpatients

The objective of this study was to validate an analytical technique with HPLC-PDA for plasma measurement of carbamazepine (CBZ) and its metabolite carbamazepine-10, 11-epoxide (CBZ-E) for therapeutic monitoring (TM) of patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder (BD), as well as evaluating hematological and biochemical parameters of patients using CBZ. Sixteen patients registered with the Public Service of Psychiatry were selected. CBZ and CBZ-E measurements were performed with HPLC-PDA shimadzu LC-20 AT Prominence, under concentration gradient. Validation criteria: selectivity, linearity, precision, accuracy, recovery, stability. Hematological and biochemical tests were performed using conventional methods. As a result, it was obtained: accuracy >85% and precision <15%, good selectivity, robustness and stability, LOQ = 250 ng.mL-1 and HQL = 60,000 ng.mL-1. Among patients, 25% and 6.25% had CBZ and CBZ-E levels within the therapeutic range, respectively. There were hematological and biochemical changes related to the drug. The validated method is reliable for its intended purpose. TM proved to be extremely useful for detecting therapeutic failure.

Hypercalcemia in bitches with malignant mammary neoplasms

Malignant hypercalcemia is a paraneoplastic syndrome. It has been detected in several types of malignant tumors in dogs, such as lymphomas, and also in mammary neoplasms, without the exact determination of the mechanisms involved in its occurrence as well as its incidence. In this study, 100 bitches with mammary malignant neoplasia, diagnosed by histopathological analysis, were submitted to clinical evaluation for disease staging, hematological evaluation, serum biochemistry, including renal function tests, hepatic and total calcium serum levels and ionized fraction. These parameters were analyzed at the time of the initial attendance and 30 days after the treatment. The most frequent histological pattern was carcinoma in mixed tumors (26%). In 52% of the diseased dogs, hypercalcemia was observed by means of ionized calcium dosing, which was not verified by means of total calcium dosing, where only 4% presented hypercalcemia. No correlation was found between hypercalcemia and the histological pattern of the neoplasms. However, the correlation was verified between hypercalcemia and more advanced stages of the disease, mainly from stage III, suggesting that the detection of hypercalcemia may be correlated with worse prognosis, showing the importance of the research concerning the presence of paraneoplastic syndromes in bitches with mammary neoplasms.

Clinico-hematological evaluation in cases of pancytopenia at tertiary care centre: largest cross-sectional study

Background: Pancytopenia is characterised by a reduction in all the three cellular elements of blood (erythrocytes, leukocytes and platelets) below the normal reference range leading to anaemia, leucopenia and thrombocytopenia. It is a feature of many serious conditions. The present study was conducted to assess aetiology, clinical profile and bone marrow morphology of conditions presenting with pancytopenia.Methods: A two years cross-sectional study from July 2017 to June 2019 was conducted in the Department of Pathology. Total of 300 pancytopenia patient were studied and their clinical features, peripheral smear finding and bone marrow morphology were studied by using marrow aspiration and biopsy.Results: Among 300 cases studied, maximum patients were in the age group 11-20 years (19.66%) with male (50.66%) predominance. Most of the patients presented with weakness (91.66%) and fever (56.66%) as chief complains. The commonest physical finding was pallor (94%) followed by splenomegaly (27.33%). Macrocytic anaemia (43.66%) was commonest peripheral finding. The commonest cause of pancytopenia was megaloblastic anaemia (32.66%) followed by dimorphic anaemia (21%), aplastic anaemia (16%) and acute leukaemia (13.33%).Conclusions: The present study concludes that detailed clinical history, primary haematological investigations along with bone marrow examinations is essential to determine the cause of pancytopenia.

Molecular Detection of Bartonella spp. and Hematological Evaluation in Domestic Cats and Dogs from Bangkok, Thailand

(1) Background: Bartonella spp. are Gram-negative, facultative, intracellular bacteria transmitted by hematophagous insects. Several species cause zoonotic diseases such as cat-scratch disease. Bartonella henselae and Bartonella clarridgeiae are the main species found in Thailand, however, there have been few studies on Bartonella spp. In addition, the hematological evaluation of Bartonella-infected animals is limited in Thailand. The aims of this study were prevalence investigation and hematological evaluation of Bartonella-infected dogs and cats residing in Bangkok, Thailand. (2) Methods: In total, 295 dogs and 513 cats were molecularly evaluated to detect Bartonella spp. using PCR with primers targeting the partial gltA, rpoB, ftsZ, ribC, and groEL genes. In total, 651 domestic animals were evaluated for hematological parameters compared between Bartonella-positive and Bartonella-negative animals. (3) Results: Overall, the prevalence of Bartonella spp. was 1.61% which was found only in free-ranging cats (2.83%). Bartonella henselae and B. clarridgeiae were confirmed from a concatenated phylogenetic tree of partial gltA and ribC genes, with 100% bootstrapping replication. For other housekeeping gene sequences, mixed infection was expected from the amplicons of rpoB, ftsZ, and groEL. Importantly, the mean corpuscular volume (MCV) was significantly increased in Bartonella-positive cats. (4) Conclusions: We suggest that B. henselae and B. clarridgeiae are important species and are still circulating in domestic animals, especially cats. The evaluation of blood parameters, especially a raised MCV, should be of concern in Bartonella infection in asymptomatic cats. Additionally, the knowledge of how to prevent Bartonella-related diseases should be promoted with people in at-risk situations.

Performance and haematology of broiler starter fed acha (Digitaria exilis staph) grains as replacement for maize

An experiment was conducted to investigate the replacement value of Acha (Digitaria exilis Staph) for maize in broilers diets. Five diets were formulated in which unprocessed Acha replaced maize at 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100% levels for the starter phase. Two hundred and twenty-five unsexed Marshall Broiler chicks were weighed and randomly allotted to the five dietary treatments with three replicates per diet in a complete randomized design (CRD). The highest (P<0.05) daily feed intake (71.,90g) and (P<0.05) daily weight gain (24.60g) were obtained in the birds fed diet 5 while the best feed conversion ratio was found in diet 2 as 2.55. Hematological evaluation was done at the end of the experiment and, the dietary treatments had no significant (P>0.5) effect on RBC (x102L, WBC (x109K Hbc (g/dl) MCH (pg) and MCHC (g/dl) and had significant (P<0.05) effect on PCV%, Lymphocytes (P<0.001) and Neutrophiles (%). Unprocessed Acha (Digitaria exilis Staph) could completely (100%) replace maize as energy source in the diets of broiler chicks at starter phase.