title: First report of Troglostrongylus brevior in a kitten in Greece.
abstract: The first case of a natural infestation with Troglostrongylus brevior in a kitten in Greece is described here. A ∼40-day-old stray cat was referred to a private veterinary clinic with signs of respiratory distress. First stage larvae of a metastrongyloid nematode were observed in the wet mount faecal preparation. Despite an anthelmintic treatment, the respiratory signs worsened and the kitten died 2 days later. The larvae in the faeces were identified morphologically and genetically as T. brevior. The present evidence suggests a vertical or direct infestation of the kitten and a severe pathogenic role of T. brevior in young cats. This report expands the recent published cases of troglostrongylosis in domestic cats to a wider geographical distribution and opens new questions on the apparent spreading of T. brevior from wild to domestic hosts.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases, School of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece, diakou@vet.auth.gr.
authors.forename: Anastasia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Diakou
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Di Cesare
authors.forename: Tania
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Aeriniotaki
authors.forename: Donato
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Traversa
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000469:parasitology*; D002415:Cats; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece; D007814:Larva / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D008681:Metastrongyloidea / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D017206:Strongylida Infections / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*