Evaluation of nasotracheal aspiration as a diagnostic tool for Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in foals.
Abstract: The reliability of preparing bacteriological cultures from nasotracheal aspirates of foals routinely in order to diagnose R. equi pneumonia in foals was studied by isolating Rhodococcus equi from specimens obtained from 96 foals by nasotracheal aspiration with a silicon catheter. Results were compared with specimens obtained from 21 foals by transtracheal aspiration (percutaneous tracheal puncture). These 117 foals showed clinical signs of respiratory tract infection at sampling. R. equi was isolated from 14 of 21 (66.7%) specimens by transtracheal aspiration and from 59 of 96 (61.4%) specimens by nasotracheal aspiration, 649 of 655 isolates (99.1%) from the 73 positive specimens were virulent R. equi, and the culture-positive foals were diagnosed as having R. equi pneumonia. To assess the contamination of aspirates by organisms from the nasopharynx, the results of R. equi isolation from nasal swabs obtained from 56 of the 96 foals were compared to those obtained by nasotracheal aspiration from the same foals. R. equi was isolated from 2 of the 56 nasal swabs: one from a tracheal aspirate was positive, and the other was not. These results suggest that the nasotracheal aspiration technique, which is noninvasive and not associated with complications, could be used as an alternative to the transtracheal aspiration method, especially for the diagnosis of R. equi pneumonia in foals.
Publication Date: 2000-11-28 PubMed ID: 11093633DOI: 10.2746/042516400777584587Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Evaluation Study
- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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The research article investigates the effectiveness of using nasotracheal aspiration as a method for diagnosing pneumonia caused by Rhodococcus equi in foals. The primary conclusion is that nasotracheal aspiration is a reliable noninvasive alternative to the traditional transtracheal aspiration.
Research Methodology
- The study involved the collection and culture of nasotracheal aspirates from 96 foals using a silicon catheter. These foals were exhibiting symptoms of respiratory tract infections.
- For comparison, the researchers also used transtracheal aspiration (a method involving percutaneous tracheal puncture) in 21 foals.
- The objective was to diagnose Rhodococcus equi pneumonia by isolating the R. equi bacteria in the aspirates.
Results and Findings
- R. equi was isolated from 66.7% of specimens gathered through transtracheal aspiration and 61.4% of specimens collected using the nasotracheal method.
- The overwhelming majority (99.1%) of the 655 isolates from the positive specimens were found to be virulent R. equi, leading the researchers to diagnose these foals as having R. equi pneumonia.
Assessing the Risk of Contamination
- To determine how much contamination came from organisms in the nasopharynx, the researchers compared R. equi isolates from nasotracheal aspirates and nasal swabs obtained from 56 of the 96 foals.
- R. equi was isolated from only two of these nasal swabs, indicating a low risk of contamination. One of these came from a foal that was also positive for R. equi in the nasotracheal aspirate, while the other did not, further highlighting the reliability of the nasotracheal method.
Final Conclusions
- The study concluded that nasotracheal aspiration is both an effective and a noninvasive alternative diagnostic technique to transtracheal aspiration for identifying R. equi pneumonia in foals.
- This finding is particularly relevant as it may help reduce the stress and complications associated with the traditional invasive method.
Cite This Article
APA
Hashikura S, Higuchi T, Taharaguchi S, Orita Y, Nanao Y, Takai S.
(2000).
Evaluation of nasotracheal aspiration as a diagnostic tool for Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in foals.
Equine Vet J, 32(6), 560-564.
https://doi.org/10.2746/042516400777584587 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Hidaka Agriculture Mutual Aid Association, Mitsuishi, Hokkaido, Japan.
MeSH Terms
- Actinomycetales Infections / diagnosis
- Actinomycetales Infections / veterinary
- Animals
- Horse Diseases / diagnosis
- Horses
- Nasopharynx / microbiology
- Pneumonia, Bacterial / diagnosis
- Pneumonia, Bacterial / veterinary
- Rhodococcus equi / isolation & purification
- Suction / veterinary
- Trachea / microbiology
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