title: Oral tylosin administration is associated with an increase of faecal enterococci and lactic acid bacteria in dogs with tylosin-responsive diarrhoea.
abstract: The term tylosin-responsive diarrhoea (TRD) is used for canine recurrent diarrhoea cases for which no underlying cause can be found after extensive diagnostic investigations, but which show a response to the antibiotic tylosin in a few days. The objective of this prospective, one-arm longitudinal trial was to assess the effects of oral tylosin administration on the faecal levels of potentially probiotic bacteria, such as Enterococcus spp. and lactic acid bacteria (LAB), in dogs with TRD. This trial included 14 client-owned suspected TRD dogs that were on tylosin treatment and had firm faeces. Treatment was then terminated and dogs were followed up for up to 2 months to determine the recurrence of diarrhoea. Once diarrhoea started, dogs received tylosin (orally, 25 mg/kg, once daily for 7 days). At the end of the treatment period, stools were firm again in 11 dogs (TRD dogs); three dogs continued having diarrhoea and were excluded from the study. Faecal samples were collected at all three time-points for culture of LAB and enterococci. In TRD dogs, the colony counts of Enterococcus spp. (P = 0.003), LAB (P = 0.037), tylosin-resistant Enterococcus spp. (P <0.001) and LAB (P <0.001) were significantly higher when the dogs were on tylosin treatment and had normal faecal consistency compared to when they had diarrhoea following discontinuation of tylosin. In conclusion, cessation of diarrhoea in TRD dogs with tylosin treatment could be mediated by selection of a specific lactic acid population, the Enterococcus spp., due to their potential probiotic properties.
authors.affiliation: Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland. Electronic address: susanne.kilpinen@helsinki.fi.
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kilpinen
authors.affiliation: Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Merja
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rantala
authors.affiliation: Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Spillmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Hygiene and Environmental Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine,University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 66, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Johanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Björkroth
authors.affiliation: Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Elias
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Westermarck
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D004285:Dogs; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D016983:Enterococcus / Q000187:drug effects*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D019344:Lactic Acid; D056546:Lactobacillales / Q000187:drug effects; D019936:Probiotics; D012008:Recurrence; D015645:Tylosin / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D019344:Lactic Acid; D015645:Tylosin
keywords: Antibiotic-responsive diarrhoea; Dog; Enterococcus; Probiotic; Tylosin resistance