Auricular Chondritis Associated with Systemic Joint and Cartilage Inflammation in a Cat

Abstract

ABSTRACT. An adult, Japanese domestic cat presented with bilateral swelling, distortion, and erythema of ears and deformation of the limbs. Biopsy of the pinnae confirmed auricular chondritis. These lesions and the cat's general condition subsequently deteriorated, and the cat died. At necropsy, chondral changes were present in the pinnae, costae, larynx, trachea, and limbs. Histopathologically, these chondral tissues showed marked deformation with lymphocytic inflammation. The limb joint inflammation was associated with chondral erosion, deformation of subchondral bones with pannus, and thinning of cancellous bones. These lesions were consistent with the diagnostic criteria for human relapsing polychondritis. However, the cat had erosive arthritis, which appeared to be different from human relapsing polychondritis. KEY WORDS: auricular chondritis, feline, relapsing polychondritis.

Immunopathological findings in a cat with auricular chondritis

“…Histologically, auricular cartilage necrosis/degeneration and fibroplasia, surrounded by inflammatory infiltrate, are the hallmarks of the disease in feline species (Delmage and Kelly, 2001;Gerber et al, 2002;Baba et al, 2009). The regenerative nodules of cartilage observed here were previously reported in a heifer, in mice with experimentally induced AC (Kitagaki et al, 2003;Kitagaki and Hirota, 2007;Adissu et al, 2014), and in a cat with RP (Baba et al, 2009).…”

“…Antigen, origin of the primary antibodies and dilutions used in the immunostaining protocols applied to the samples tissues of the cat Detection method: biotin-peroxidase-streptavidin; § Chromogen: DAB = 3,3′diaminobenzidine Immune-mediated inflammatory diseases are among the most challenging in terms of determining their pathogenesis and related injuries, as in the case of auricular chondritis (AC) in cats. Feline AC affects both ears with noninvolvement of other cartilaginous tissues and occurs predominantly in young and middle-aged short-haired cats (Delmage and Kelly, 2001;Gerber et al, 2002;Baba et al, 2009), as observed in the case reported here. Cats may also present involvement of the joints, respiratory, cardiovascular, ocular and other systems, in addition to the cartilage of the pinnae (Gerber et al, 2002;Baba et al, 2009), being similar to the relapsing polychondritis (RP) that affects middleaged humans (Lahmer et al, 2010;Arnaud et al, 2014;Cantarini et al, 2014).…”

“…The profile of inflammatory cells around the cartilage of the pinnae in the cat demonstrated a mixed-cell reaction composed predominantly of mononuclear cells with multinucleated giant cells. The perichondrial inflammatory infiltrate in cats with AC is generally composed of a variable number of mononuclear cells, neutrophils and a few multinuclear giant cells (Delmage and Kelly, 2001;Gerber et al, 2002;Baba et al, 2009). RP in mice and men is dominated by a histiocytic reaction and inflammatory infiltration by mononuclear cells in areas of cartilage damage (Kitagaki and Hirota, 2007;Ouchi et al, 2011), as observed in the case reported here.…”

“…RP in mice and men is dominated by a histiocytic reaction and inflammatory infiltration by mononuclear cells in areas of cartilage damage (Kitagaki and Hirota, 2007;Ouchi et al, 2011), as observed in the case reported here. Based on the rarity of AC, the limited pathological data available in domestic animals and unknown pathogenesis, the disease stage is suspected to be responsible for variations in the type of inflammatory cells (Baba et al, 2009).…”

„Blut im Ohr“ – Othämatome bei Hund und Katze

“…B. Abszesse durch Kampf-oder Bissverletzungen, bei der Katze auch aurikuläre Chondritis (▶ Abb. 2), [1,6,10]. • endokrine Erkrankungen (Hypothyreose, Hyperadrenokortizismus)…”