Chromobacterium violaceum Infection in a Horse

Chromobacteriosis (Chromobacterium violaceum) in a calf from Brazil - case report

“…Some clinical and pathological conditions in domestic animals are similar. Reports in animals include suppurative pneumonia, abscesses and necrosis in the lungs and liver (Liu et al, 1989;Ajithdoss et al, 2009;Hammerschmitt et al, 2017), splenitis (Carrasco et al, 1996;Ajithdoss et al, 2009), meningoencephalitis (Liu et al, 1989;Ajithdoss et al, 2009), necrosuppurative omphalophlebitis, anterior uveitis with hypopyon, suppurative polyarthritis (Ajithdoss et al, 2009) and fibrinous pericarditis (Carrasco et al, 1996;Crosse et al, 2006). The clinical signs reported in the present study are consistent with those previously described in animals.…”

“…Infection can occur orally, through injured skin's contact with contaminated water or soil (Richard, 1993;Siqueira et al, 2005;Crosse et al, 2006), and by airways (Siqueira et al, 2005;Hammerschmitt et al, 2017). However, the clinical course and some lesions found, like necrosuppurative omphalophlebitis, indicate that the umbilicus was the likely point of entry in the present report, similar to findings described in a calf with chromobacteriosis reported by Ajithdoss et al (2009).…”

“…Although highly fatal, infections by C. violaceum are rarely reported in animals (Carrasco et al, 1996;Ajithdoss et al, 2009). In domestic animals, visceral abscesses, pleuropneumonia and septicemia have been reported in a pig (Liu et al, 1989), sheep (Carrasco et al, 1996), dogs (Crosse et al, 2006) cattle (Ajithdoss et al, 2009) and a horse (Hammerschmitt et al, 2017). This report describes a fatal case suggestive of septicemia associated with Chromobacterium violaceum in a calf from the central western region of Brazil.…”

“…However, some cases have been described in humans, which resulted in highly fatal infections (Siqueira et al, 2005). Reports worldwide have been associated with rural areas or stagnant water (Siqueira et al, 2005), but there are few reports in domestic animals (Liu et al, 1989;Carrasco et al, 1996;Crosse et al, 2006;Ajithdoss et al, 2009;Hammerschmitt et al, 2017). In Brazil, only a recent report in a horse has been published (Hammerschmitt et al, 2017).…”

“…In animals, Hammerschmitt et al (2017) suggest that the immaturity or suppression of the immune system may be a predisposing factor to infection and development of the disease. In the present report, the calf have had a passive immunity failure by not ingesting the colostrum due a flexor deformity of the metacarpophalangeal joint, which led to hypoglobulinemia, thereby predisposing the calf to infection.…”