Intracardiac tuberculomas caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a dog.
BACKGROUND
This paper presents an unusual form of disseminated Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in a dog. The infection lasted at least one year and its main gross lesions were massive cardiac tuberculomas. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of heart tuberculomas in a dog.


METHODS
A 9-year-old mixed-breed male dog weighing 10 kg was referred to the clinic for cardiological evaluation before general anesthesia. The echocardiography revealed a lump of about 20 mm in diameter in the area of the left atrium. Almost one year later the same dog was presented again in severe clinical state (fever, anorexia, weight loss, depression, cough, dyspnea, lymphadenomegaly, vomiting, recent episodes of fainting). Due to progression of the disease and poor effects of treatment the owner decided to euthanize the dog. Most prominent lesions observed during autopsy were diffuse pneumonia, fibrinous pericarditis and epicarditis as well as large, yellow, semisolid masses of caseous necrosis in the left and right atrium (30 mm and 15 mm in diameter, respectively). From both pulmonary and cardiac lesions M. tuberculosis was isolated on Lowenstein-Jensen slants and in Bactec Mycobacteria Growth Indicator Tube 960 liquid media, and confirmed by BD ProbeTec ET Direct Detection Assay and spoligotyping.


CONCLUSIONS
Companion animals may occasionally suffer from tuberculosis but majority of cases probably remain misdiagnosed or undetected. Typically tuberculosis in dogs affects lungs and their regional lymph nodes. Even in humans tuberculomas are rare manifestation of mycobacterial infection, mostly seen in the central nervous system. Atypical location of main tuberculous lesions may account for lack of correct ante mortem diagnosis in this case.
Department of Small Animal Diseases with Clinic, Division of Infectious Diseases, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159c Street, 02-776, Warsaw, Poland. olga_szalus@sggw.pl.
Olga
O
Szaluś-Jordanow
Department of Microbiology, Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, Płocka 26 Street, 01-138, Warsaw, Poland.
Ewa
E
Augustynowicz-Kopeć
Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159 Street, 02-776, Warsaw, Poland.
Michał
M
Czopowicz
Veterinary Clinic "Auxilium" Arkadiusz Olkowski, Królewska St. 64, 05-822, Milanówek, Poland.
Arkadiusz
A
Olkowski
Veterinary Clinic "Auxilium" Arkadiusz Olkowski, Królewska St. 64, 05-822, Milanówek, Poland.
Andrzej
A
Łobaczewski
Department of Preclinical Sciences, Division of Microbiology, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Ciszewskiego 8 Street, 02-786, Warsaw, Poland.
Magdalena
M
Rzewuska
Department of Pathology and Veterinary Diagnostics, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159 Street, 02-776, Warsaw, Poland.
Rafał
R
Sapierzyński
Third Department of Lung Diseases, Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, Płocka 26 Street, 01-138, Warsaw, Poland.
Elżbieta
E
Wiatr
Department of Pathology and Veterinary Diagnostics, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159 Street, 02-776, Warsaw, Poland.
Magdalena
M
Garncarz
Department of Small Animal Diseases with Clinic, Division of Infectious Diseases, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159c Street, 02-776, Warsaw, Poland.
Tadeusz
T
Frymus
D000818:Animals; D004285:Dogs; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis; D013902:Radiography, Thoracic / Q000662:veterinary; D014375:Tuberculoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*
Dog; Mycobacterium tuberculosis; Tuberculoma