Clinical, diagnostic and pathologic features of presumptive cases of Chlamydia pecorum-associated arthritis in Australian sheep flocks

Evelyn Walker; Cecily Moore; Patrick Shearer; Martina Jelocnik; Sankhya Bommana; Peter Timms; Adam Polkinghorne

doi:10.1186/s12917-016-0832-3

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Clinical, diagnostic and pathologic features of presumptive cases of Chlamydia pecorum-associated arthritis in Australian sheep flocks

Journal article

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Clinical, diagnostic and pathologic features of presumptive cases of Chlamydia pecorum-associated arthritis in Australian sheep flocks

Evelyn Walker, Cecily Moore, Patrick Shearer, Martina Jelocnik, Sankhya Bommana, Peter Timms and Adam Polkinghorne

BMC Veterinary Research, Vol.12, 193

2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-016-0832-3

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Abstract

chlamydia pecorum

ovine

arthritis

conjunctivitis

CFT

qPCR

Background: Arthritis is an economically significant disease in lambs and is usually the result of a bacterial infection. One of the known agents of this disease is Chlamydia pecorum, a globally recognised livestock pathogen associated with several diseases in sheep, cattle and other hosts. Relatively little published information is available on the clinical, diagnostic and pathologic features of C. pecorum arthritis in sheep, hindering efforts to enhance our understanding of this economically significant disease. In this case series, a combination of standard diagnostic testing used routinely by veterinarians, such as the Chlamydia complement fixation text (CFT), veterinary clinical examinations, and additional screening via C. pecorum specific qPCR was used to describe putative chlamydial infections in five sheep flocks with suspected ovine arthritis. Case presentation: Five separate cases involving multiple lambs (aged six to ten months) of different breeds with suspected C. pecorum arthritis are presented. In two of the five cases, arthritic lambs exhibited marked depression and lethargy. Arthritis with concurrent conjunctivitis was present in four out of five lamb flocks examined. Chlamydia CFT demonstrated medium to high positive antibody titres in all flocks examined. C. pecorum shedding was evident at multiple sites including the conjunctiva, rectum and vagina, as determined via qPCR. Two of the five flocks received antimicrobials and all flocks recovered uneventfully regardless of treatment. Conclusion: This case series highlights the features a field veterinarian may encounter in cases of suspected ovine chlamydial arthritis. Our analysis suggests a presumptive diagnosis of chlamydial arthritis in lambs can be made when there is evidence of joint stiffness with or without synovial effusion and elevated chlamydia antibody titres. C. pecorum-specific qPCR was found to be a useful ancillary diagnostic tool, detecting Chlamydia positivity in low or negative CFT titre animals. Variables such as symptom duration relative to sampling, sheep breed and farm management practices were all factors recorded that paint a complex epidemiological and diagnostic picture for this disease. These case studies serve to provide a platform for further research to improve diagnostic testing and new treatment and control strategies for C. pecorum infections in sheep.

Details

Title: Clinical, diagnostic and pathologic features of presumptive cases of Chlamydia pecorum-associated arthritis in Australian sheep flocks
Authors: Evelyn Walker (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Cecily Moore (Author) - Central West Local Land Services
Patrick Shearer (Author) - State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
Martina Jelocnik (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Sankhya Bommana (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Peter Timms (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Adam Polkinghorne (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering
Publication details: BMC Veterinary Research, Vol.12, 193; 9
Publisher: BioMed Central Ltd.
Date published: 2016
DOI: 10.1186/s12917-016-0832-3
ISSN: 1746-6148
Copyright note: Copyright © 2016 The Author(s). Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
Organisation Unit: School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99451183802621
Output Type: Journal article

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