Actinomyces naeslundii infection in an African hedgehog (Atelerix albiventris) with mandibular osteomyelitis and cellulitis

Abstract

Actinomyces naeslundii is a Gram-positive, anaerobic bacillus commonly isolated from the oral mucosa of a variety of mammals, including human beings (Bergeron and Burne 2001). It is one of the first bacteria to inhabit the oral cavity of human beings after birth, and is an early coloniser of cleaned tooth surfaces that favours invasion by other bacteria (Bergeron and Burne 2001). Actinomyces species seem to be involved in caries and periodontal disease in human beings (Ximenez-Fyvie and others 2000, Bergeron and Burne 2001, Marchant and others 2001, Palmer and others 2003). Actinomyces israelii has been isolated from human beings with mandibular osteomyelitis (Gupta and others 1986). There are few reports describing the oral bacterial flora associated with dental disease in animals. Actinomyces species have been found as one of the predominant bacteria in subgingival plaques in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) (Eke and others 1993). Mandibular osteomyelitis has been reported in animals, especially cattle with Actinomyces bovis infection (McGavin and others 2001) and captive macropods, mostly with Actinomyces species, especially A bovis and Actinomyces viscosus (Miller and others 1980). In macropods, A viscosus can frequently be isolated from the oral cavity of healthy animals (Miller and others 1980). A israelii has been recovered from rabbits with mandibular and maxillar abscesses (Tyrell and others 2002). To the authors' knowledge, there are no reports of mandibular osteomyelitis and cellulitis caused by A naeslundii in any animal species, and mandibular osteomyelitis has not been described in African hedgehogs (Atelerix albiventris). This short communication describes the clinical, microbiological and pathological findings of mandibular osteomyelitis associated with A naeslundii infection in a captive African hedgehog, as well as its treatment and follow-up. An adult, male pet African hedgehog weighing 268 g was donated to Africam Safari, Puebla, Mexico. Its diet consisted of commercial cat pellets. Two months later, it developed a marked soft tissue swelling in the left mandibular region and had lost weight to 252 g. A purulent exudate was removed from the lesion under isofluorane anaesthesia (induction at 4 per cent and maintenance at 0•5 to 1 per cent), and a radioraph revealed incipient lysis of the mandibular bone. The hedgehog was treated with 20 mg/kg amoxicillin and clavulanate, orally, three times a day for five days. One month later, the soft tissue swelling was still present and lysis of the mandibular bone was more pronounced; the animal's bodyweight had increased to 296 g at this time. A cytological preparation of a fine-needle aspirate from the lesion stained with May-Grünwald-Giemsa revealed occasional, large basophilic colonies of clumped, elongated bacilli surrounded by a collarette of neutrophils (Fig 1). The inflammation associated with these colonies was composed pre

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