Bacteriological Findings, Blood Chemistry Profile and Plasma Endotoxin Levels in Bitches with Pyometra or other Uterine Diseases

Abstract

Summary Uteri from 60 bitches with a clinical diagnosis of pyometra, or with an enlarged uterus as revealed radiographically or ultrasonographically, underwent histopathological examination, at which a diagnosis of pyometra was established in 48 of the 60 (80%) cases. Escherichia coli was isolated from 43 (90%) of the 48 uteri with pyometra. In 8 of the 60 cases, other pathological uterine conditions, such as endometrial hyperplasia, adenomyosis, mucometra or hydrometra, were diagnosed histopathologically. No bacterial growth was observed in the uteri of these 8 cases. Four of the 60 bitches (6%) showed no pathological changes in the uterus, and in 3 of these no bacteriological growth was seen in the uterus, while in one case a sparse growth of mixed culture was found. Blood samples from bitches with uterine infection caused by gram‐negative bacteria showed marked hematological changes. These included higher total WBC counts and a more marked left shift in the differential WBC count than among the other bitches. Toxic degeneration of neutrophils was present among the bitches with gram‐negative uterine infection and the serum ALP level was slightly higher than in the other groups of bitches. The plasma endotoxin concentration was determined in 53 bitches before surgery, in 28 bitches after surgery and in 11 control dogs. Only in 7 of the samples was endotoxin detected. The general condition of the bitches included in the present study was only mildly to moderately affected, and in no case indicated severe endotoxemia.

The effects of in vitro exposure to progesterone and estradiol-17β on the activity of canine neutrophils

“…Subsequently, we wanted to discover whether suppression of phagocytosis-induced oxidative burst was caused by impaired ability to recognise lipopolysaccharide (LPS) by TLR4 because LPS is the main component of the outer membrane of E. coli, the most common bacterial agent associated with canine pyometra (Fransson et al 1997;Dhaliwal et al 1999) (Figure 3). Median fluorescence intensity of TLR-expressing neutrophils appeared not to be influenced by oestrogen and progesterone.…”

Efficacy of Fosfomycin on <i>Escherichia coli</i> Isolated from Bitches with Pyometra

“…Its etiology and pathogenesis are complex and only partly understood [11,14,16,17,19]. The most common bacterium isolated in cases of pyometra is Escherichia coli(E. coli) [1,5,8,11,16]. There have been a few studies of resistance to antimicrobials among bacteria isolated from the uteri of bitches with pyometra [4,7,9,15,20].…”

Relationship of the Blood Endotoxin Concentration and Prognosis in Dogs with Pyometra.

“…This often occurs in aged animals, and surgery in the affected animals involves high risks because of complications such as renal failure and septic shock, leading to death in some animals [2,9,10]. The etiology of pyometra is mainly Escherichia coli, Klebsiella, Pasteurella and Staphylococcus, most of which are gram-negative bacteria [1,7,10]. However, little is known about the relation between pyometra and endotoxin, which is a constitutive component of gram-negative bacteria.…”

“…In clinical veterinary medicine, blood endotoxin levels have been reported in bovine gangrenous mammillitis [3] and equine colic [5], but little attention has been paid to blood endotoxin levels in small animals [1,4,14].…”

“…The main pathogenic bacteria responsible for the disease are Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Pseudomonas and Proteus. Of these, Escherichia coli, a gram-negative species, is the major causative agent in canine pyometra [1,7,10].…”