In Article <3q3ggq$eib at newsbf02.news.aol.com>
alw1 at aol.com (AlW1) writes:
>>Realizing things are not always what they seem, have you heard of this
>technique? [rectal swab and acid fast staining] If so, what do you think of
>it -
I'm not familiar with the work you describe, but I have questions on
the specificity of the technique. Advocates of the AF procedure claim high
specificity, however, in my experience alot of detritus often stains AF while
other things that appear to be diagnostically consistent with crypto (small
size @ 4um, 4 sporozoites etc.) do not stain. I would be interested in
finding out if this researcher verified his results using the IFA for crypto
(Merifluor) while this will stain other species (reptile, murine, bovine),
it has higher specificity for Crypto than the AF procedure.
>it sounds like a simple test
>for a clinical practice to perform on pets with an inflammatory diarrhea.
this raises an interesting point. on the one hand its important to
identify the etiological agent for the disease (illness) to interrupt
transmission, however, the current drugs available for crypto are modestly
efficacious, and expensive. what is gained by identifing alot of cases of
crypto.....which will be for the most part self-limmiting? Admittedly, this
question has gotten more difficult w/the AIDS and Immunocompromized pet owner
population. Nevertheless, it would seem that supportive fluid therapy is
primary to identification, and increased hygiene and isolation of the affected
animal from susceptible hosts would be also be prescribed pending isolation and
identification of the etiologic agent...if that's possible.
However, for pets
with inflammatory diarrhea....i would rank Giardia much higher in the
differential diagnosis than Crypto, also the GI viruses and bacterial agents.
**********************************
* Charles T. Faulkner * Get your facts first and then you
* Univ of Tennessee, Knoxville * can distort them as much as you please.
* (ctfaulkn at utkvx.utk.edu) * Mark Twain
*********************************
