Spinal cord ischemic necrosis due to fibrocartilaginous embolism in a horse.

infected with P. testudinis, the difference (8/20 versus 2/23) is significant (P < 0.05 by Fisher's test). Pasteurella testudinis may play a more specific role in abscesses of turtles than in the other conditions in which it was encountered, as suggested by its occurrence in pure culture and appreciable numbers (3+ or 4+) that was limited to 6 such cases, apart from 1 instance of apparent bacteremia in a tortoise in which liver and lung yielded similar results. Further, in the 15 cases found in a retrospective search of our laboratory records for microorganisms recovered from abscesses in tortoises and turtles (1984-1989), P. testudinis was present on 8 occasions and a variety of organisms were found in the other 7 cases, had any bacterial flora in common. The sparse pertinent literature, although recognizing abscesses of chelonians, particularly those related to the ear, as common problems, 2,10 points to no single or even predominant etiologic agents. The broad assortment of agents reported includes various members of the family Enterobacteriaceae, 1,2,6 but also Aeromonas sp., Pseudomonas sp., 2,6 Corynebacterium murium, 1 Bran-hamella (Neisseria) catarrhalis, Streptomyces sp., and Pas-teurella sp. 4 Most reports antedate the description of P. tes-tudinis. The apparent prominence of P. testudinis in turtle abscesses does not necessarily point to a specific pathogenic role of the agent in this condition. As a common commensal, it may simply be in a preferential position to exploit the established chelonian propensity toward middle ear problems, 10 particularly manifest in turtles. on the basis of deoxyribonu-cleic acid homology, with proposals for new species Pasteurella dagmatis, and Pasteurella canis, Pasteurella stomatis, Pasteu-rella anatis, and Pasteurella langaa. a parasite of desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizi). Fibrocartilaginous embolism is a syndrome of acute spinal mild paresis to total upper or lower motor neuron paralysis cord infarction that has been described in humans, 1,9,10 with anesthesia. 3 Although the precise pathogenesis of this dogs, 2,4,7,8 and swine. 11,13 Cases have also been described in a condition is not clear, the hallmark lesion is ischemic necrosis cat 17 and in 2 horses. 12,14 In all species, the clinical signs of of spinal cord segments, associated with fibrocartilaginous fibrocartilaginous embolism are typically very acute, devel-emboli. oping over minutes to hours, and they range from ataxia or An 8-year-old Quarterhorse gelding was presented with an acute onset of grade 5 lameness on the left foreleg and trem-From the Departments of Veterinary Pathobiology …