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Swab Results

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worried val of york

worried val of york

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This is a follow on from Rattling sound when breathing. The swab results show that Rupert had
1 Coliform
2 Stephilococcus
3 Alpha-haema
The vet advised me that Rupert could get the symptons again and also said it could effect his bones.
Has anyone got any experience of this please.
Rupert appears to be back to his usual self again after his septrin, Metacam, Pro - C treatment.
 
To be honest when the vet phoned me I didn't really take the situation in. I was so relieved Rupert had seemingly recovered. I had to phone back to get the spelling of the bacteria that had been discovered. I told the vet I would take him back should any symtoms reoccur. Rupert has stopped taking anitbiotics and metacam now. So I hope he keeps well and I won't have to take him back to the vets.
 
I misspelt the third bacteria
which should read Alpha-haemolyphic. That's what happens when you write things on backs of envelopes
 
Hi @Goth Mummy I have no idea what he means. I have looked on the internet to try and get more information about the bacteria. But I have decided that as Rupert is back to his normal self not to worry. I know that if humans have nose swabs there are allsorts of bacteria up there. Not really pleasant to know but it is fact. And most humans don't sniff round on the floor like guinea pig! But I know if he shows any signs of illness I'll take him back to vets straight away.
 
Yes thats true, I had some tests myself recently and was rather alarmed at the long words on the test results but was reassured that all the bacteria were normal!
 
Headline message:
These results are not unexpected......my guinea pigs routinely get these types of results from swabs.
However my swab results also include details of antibiotic resistance. The limited information you have been provided above is confusing to a microbioloigist such as myself..and NOT representative of even a summary lab report from a swab. It may be that your vet has further information that they have not passed on (which would also explain the reference to bone infections)
At the moment you don;t need to worry - but you need to ensure that, if you have paid good money for the swab, you get proper results back that will help Rupert in the future if he gets another URI.

I will be putting up further posts to provide explanations/ information for both you and other forum users.....watch this space
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PURPOSE OF SWABS

All animals carry bacteria on the skin, in the nose, throat, intestinal tract etc.
For the most part these are harmless in that they are unable to cause disease (and called "commensales").
However animals also carry other bacteria that can, if given the opportunity of a trauma or lowered immune system, enter and cause disease. These are called "opportunistic pathogens". Some of these are resistant to certain antibioitics and the most obvious example is MRSA (methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) which is one of the hospital superbugs)
Finally there are also bacteria that aren't routinely resident but when the animal comes into contact with them, in a high enough dose, they can cause serious disease e.g. Tuberculosis, Cholera, Salmonella, Plague.


The purpose of taking a swab is to identify if there is a particular overgrowth of a particular pathogenic bacterium that may be responsible for the condition.....and to test it's sensitivity/resistance to a panel of antibiotics to ensure the best choice of treatment. It is therefore good practice to take a swab before prescribing any antibiotics as any medication can interfere with the accuracy of the results. The swab is cultured on special media that ensures only the potential disease-causing bugs will grow (as opposed to the harmless bugs)

Reading back - this was a nasal swab to determine the cause of a URI........but it is unclear whether Rupert was on or had just finished a course of anTIbiotics at the time. The results show that Rupert carries some opportunistic pathogens in his nose that may have the potential to cause a URI (or worse pneumonia) in the future if he has a weakened immune system or IS subject to dramatic temperature changes.
 
RUPERT'S RESULTS

The results of Rupert's swab are actually a relatively normal result for guinea pigs - they all carry these types of bugs (opportunistic pathogens) ......as do we slaves.

1. Coliforms refers collectively to a specific group of Gram negative rod-shaped bacteria - such as E.coli and Klebsiella.- that are normally regarded as intestinal bacteria (ie of faecal origin) although can also be found environmentally in the soil. The purity of water supplies is measured by the Coliform index. Coliforms such as E Coli are more likely to cause a UTI or upset tummy in guinea pigs rather than a URI..(Klebsiella can cause pneumonia in humans and, whilst it has the potential to cause pneumonia in guinea pigs, I am not aware it is regarded as a common cause, nor have I seen any case studies).

Other more common suspects of URI's/penumonia in guinea pigs are Bordetella and Pasteurella, (with possibly Moraxella and Haemophilus) - these are also Gram negative but not intestinal in origin and therefore not normally classed as "coliforms"....They are often carried asymptomatically in the respiratory tract by rabbits (hence why guinea pigs should not live with rabbits). Interestingly we have just isolated Moraxella in swabs from one of my stinky willy guinea pigs!

I am therefore curious as exactly what the lab meant when referring specifically to "coliforms" rather than the broader classification "Gram negative rods"..(which would have included for the two main Gram negative suspects Bordetalla and Pasteurella for guinea pig URI's). ..As there is no further information to identify the particular bugs isolated. this result is of very limited use..

2/3. These results are confusing.
The two most common causes of pneumonia/URI's in guinea pigs are thought to be the Gram positive Streptococcus and Staphylococcus groups (with Streptococcus being the more likely occurring candidate). There are many sub-species of each of these groups that are ovoid/round in nature under the microscope with Staphylococcus species appearing as bunches of grapes whereas Streptococcus species appear as long chains .

To confuse matters further, certain species from both these "Groups" are also regarded as the main cause of abcesses in guinea pigs (entering via wounds/trauma)..

Result (2) states Staphylococcus - but result (3) - alpha-haemolytic ...(which refers to the appearance of colonies cultured on blood agar) ...is a sub-classification that applies ONLY to Streptococcus species.

So for the purposes of the next post I am going to assume that both Streptococcus and Staphylcocccus groups were isolated
 
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR RUPERT|?

1) BUGS identified
Ignore the coliform results unless the lab have identified particular species of bugs.
You need to clarify with vet if it is just Staph or also Strep (bearing in mind result 3)

Streptococcus and Staphylococcus groups are present in all animals....mainly on the skin and in the respiratory tract
Some species of each group are harmless commensales.
Some other species are opportunistic pathogens and could" cause disease but only in the right circumstances (trauma, lowered immune system etc).
As far as guinea pigs are concerned....certain Staphyloccal and Streptococcal species "could" cause URI's & pneumonia (e.g. Staph aureus, Strep pneumonia) , and also abcesses/cervical lymphadenitis (e.g. Staph aureus, Strep.zooepidemicus). These bugs are presently residing quite harmlessly in all our guinea pigs....with no problems...(but awaiting for an opportunity)

It looks like, in common with other guinea pigs,, Rupert has the normal exposure to Staph and Strep.
So all the results are telling you is that Rupert is at risk of opportunistic infections from these bugs (BUT SO IS EVERY OTHER GUINEA PIG!). Hence why I say that the results per se are not anything to immediately worry about.

2) Antibiotic resistance/Future treatment
You need to clarify with the vet if antibiotic sensitivity testing was done and if so, what the results were.....If it wasn;t done, then ,I'm sorry to say that the results are completely unhelpful to Rupert and a waste of money

Staph and Strep used to be very sensitive to penicillin but this is not a good drug in guinea pigs so they are given baytril.
Sadly, over the years these bacteria have managed to build up resistance to certain more commonly-used antibiotics in both humans (e.g. MRSA) and guinea pigs (worryingly we are now also starting to see the occurrence of baytril and septrin-resistant Staph and Strep in routine guinea pigs swabs). So "just" prescribing baytril or septrin (especially in recurring cases) is not the best course of action as the antibiotic may be useless and allow the infection to spread.The purpose of a swab therefore should be to identify the antibiotic-resistance profile to save weeks of "trying" the wrong drug
My biggest concern therefore is that you have received no information on any antibiotic resistance profile in Rupert's results (if indeed it was done)

From my own experience of swabbing multiple guinea pigs in my house over the last 4 years, most of them now carry baytril and septrin resistant Staph and Strep (be it faecal, oral or nasal swabs). My vet's policy now is to swab first before treating and (if an emergency and the piggie can't wait 48hours for results) then the first broad-spectrum antibiotic of choice is now doxy-cycline rather than baytril or septrin.

3) Bone involvement?
Extrapolating what we know in humans for these diseases to guinea pigs...."Strep" sore throat, if not treated early enough with the right antibiotic, could spread and cause rheumatic fever/arthritis and also endocarditis (infection of the heart valves leading to congestive heart failure). Staphylococcal species (Staph.aureus) that normally cause limited and treatable skin infections/boils/URI etc could, if given the right opportunity, also cause such diverse diseases as food poisoning and osteomyelitis (bone infection)...which is why I think your vet made the remarks they did.

CLOSING MESSAGE
  1. Guinea pigs, like humans, carry all sorts of bugs that "could" cause disease in the right circumstances and that will show up on swabs
  2. These bugs often carry resistance to the normally prescribed antibiotics...and if allowed to fester can lead to other complications such as heart disease and bone disease.
  3. It is important to realise that baytril and septrin may no longer be the most appropriate first line of attack when a guinea pig is ill - but apart from baytril, all other antibiotics are STILL off license and many vets are therefore not happy to prescribe without diagnostic justification.
  4. Guinea pig slaves need to accept that diagnostics (in the form of swabs and sensitivity cultures....which cost money) are becoming an increasingly important as the first line of guinea pig treatment...providing the lab/vet knows what they are doing and reports back properly to the slave concerned..
  5. Swabs/lab results are only worth the money if antibiotic sensitivity testing is included
Phew - sorry for the epic epistle! But hope this helps everyone - mods feel free to make the info into some sort of sticky if it helps.

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