Disseminated Aspergillus in female German Shepherd - Page 3

Fungal infection, get the meds as well as steriods to reduce swelling and hope for recovery.

http://vet.sagepub.com/content/22/6/540.full.pdf

I am so sorry to hear that Grumpyman's shepherd lost her fight with aspergillus.  I was wondering if this disease is really limited to southern geographical areas?  I asked 3 vets to test my GSD for the infection and they all refused because they say there are no cases of it in the Northeast.  How would they know if they never test for it?

Personally, I avoid any pet product that lists aspergillus as a digestive additive.  FYI, I believe aspergillus is also the source of the enzyme in Lactaid for humans that pre-digests the lactose.

Nomofish -  Good luck with your dog and let us know how things are going.

Michado, even if your dog were to test positive for aspergillius,  he or she will probably never develop the disease. The treatment is so brutal and harsh that it is only recommended when a dog is symptomatic. I doubt any vet would suggest treating a dog that cultured positive unless it were symptomatic. Dogs probably have a better chance of being struck by lightning than of becoming sick from aspergillus.

There's a lot of information about this fungus on the net if you're interested in learning more.

Blitzen,

I have researched this a bit and really have not identified the geographical areas where the disease is most likely.  My concern was that, if a dog symptomatic for the disease already has a poor survival prognosis, it is critical that there be some way to test early.  Especially since so many vets don't recognize the illness and treat for other problems wasting even more time.  I am confused because I read the disease is believed to be related to IgA deficiencies in GSDs, but even the deficiency is hard to test for since it is localized to specific tissues?

Low IgA also contributes to auto immune diseases such as allergies.  If it could be detected, for example by a blood test, it might be another useful tool for screening breeding dogs and puppies.  Even if aspergillosis is fairly rare, the ability to predict sensitivities could be helpful.  It is so tragic that these owners have lost dogs at such young ages.  Any disease of young animals is especially sad. IMO, especially if there were a simple test that might prevent it.  But from what I've read, it might take a biopsy to check IgA, and that is probably too extreme.

This thread really brings home the seriousness of this rare disease. I remembered it from a while back, (it has some good old names I miss seeing too,) any way, FWIW:
http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/forum.read?mnr=362745-does-anyone-have-any-experience-with-aspergillosis#

Kasha came back from the veterinary hospital 2 days ago. She was at about 85% herself for the first day back but is now very lethargic again. She began itraconazole and we are hoping some of her symptoms may be related to mild side effects. Fingers crossed that whatever it is will respond to the medication.