Clinical evaluation of therapeutic success in rabbits with suspected encephalitozoonosis

Between 2000 and 2008, 95 rabbits with suspected encephalitozoonosis and neurological symptoms were treated at the Clinic of Small Animal Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University Munich. Standard treatment consisted of oxytetracycline (from 2000 to 2003; n=50) or fenbendazole and oxytetracycline (from...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Veterinary parasitology 2012-06, Vol.187 (1-2), p.328-332
Main Authors: Sieg, Jessica, Hein, Jutta, Jass, Ariane, Sauter-Louis, Carola, Hartmann, Katrin, Fischer, Andrea
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Antifungal Agents - therapeutic use
Dexamethasone
Encephalitozoon cuniculi
Encephalitozoonosis - drug therapy
Encephalitozoonosis - veterinary
Female
Fenbendazole
Fenbendazole - administration & dosage
Fenbendazole - therapeutic use
Male
medicine
Neurological symptoms
nutritional support
oxytetracycline
Oxytetracycline - administration & dosage
Oxytetracycline - therapeutic use
Rabbit
Rabbits
survival rate
Time Factors
universities
vitamins
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Summary:Between 2000 and 2008, 95 rabbits with suspected encephalitozoonosis and neurological symptoms were treated at the Clinic of Small Animal Medicine, Ludwig Maximilian University Munich. Standard treatment consisted of oxytetracycline (from 2000 to 2003; n=50) or fenbendazole and oxytetracycline (from 2004 to 2008; n=45), and the rabbits were randomly assigned to treatment groups with or without dexamethasone. Each therapeutic regime was given for 10days, with fluids, B vitamins and nutritional support added as needed. Therapeutic success was evaluated by assessing the survival rate on day 10, the neurological score of the surviving rabbits and Kaplan–Meier curves for long-term survival past 10days. Inclusion of fenbendazole in the treatment protocol was associated with increased survival rates on day 10 (p=0.043), better neurological scores (p=0.008), and improved long-term survival (p=0.025) based on the results of univariate analyses. Treatment with dexamethasone showed no effect on neurological score or on short- or long-term survival. The study did not provide any evidence that dexamethasone is an effective component of the treatment scheme.
ISSN:0304-4017
1873-2550
DOI:10.1016/j.vetpar.2011.12.014