Rhodococcus Equi Flashcards
what is the significanct of R. equi
- leading cause of bronchopneumonia in foals
- high morbidity and mortality
- Gram +, pleomorphic rod
- facultative intracellular
- pretty easily recognized
what is the prevalence of Rhodococcus equi on endemic farms?
13-25%
epidemiology of R. equi
- exposure very common
- organism prevalent on many farms
- prevalence of dz highly variable between farms and years
- mortality 0-30%
what are risk factors for acquiring R. equi?
- foal density
- large farms
- transient mares
- host factors
T/F: foals are exposed to R. equi at birth
true. susceptible to infection several days-21 days, then disease occurs around 3-4 month old foals
at what age of foals do we typically see clinical disease of R. equi in?
3-4 months
what do you see on bloodwork with R. equi
- neutrophilia and hyperfibrinogenemia
- serology
what are clinical signs of R. equi?
- variable depending on severity
- early signs may be subtle
- subclinical disease
- advanced signs are easier to recognize
how do you diagnose R. equi in foals?
- important to differentiate R. equi from other cases of pneumonia!
- different abx therapy!!
- history
- signalment
- clinical signs
- bloodwork
- radiographs
- US
- isolation of organism
what is the most common way to diagnose R. equi?
- radiographs: very characteristic: see cotton ball like areas of little masses. they are all granulomatous abscesses sitting in lungs
- can also use US: see areas in lungs that are consolidation or abscesses
should you use TTW or BAL on R. equi cases
TTW. don’t use BAL
what is the abx combo used for R. equi?
macrolide + rifampin
macrolides directly target the bacteria, and rifampin penetrates the cells since it’s an intracellular bacteria
what antibiotic should you never use in horses because it causes colitis?
erythromycin
what side effect is seen with rifampin use in horses?
red urine
