Pulmonary paragonimiasis in a royal Bengal tiger- A case report

Abstract

The pulmonary paragonimiasis is a zoonotic disease, which affects humans, many wild felids and canids including domestic dogs and cats. In this study necropsy was conducted on a wild female royal Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) aged about 8 years from Kakanakote beat and section, Rajiv Gandhi National Park, Nagarahole, Mysore district, Karnataka, India. The post –mortem examination revealed that lungs were severely congested with numerous encysted lesions in all the lobes. The cysts had coffee bean shaped flukes in pairs, along with brownish necrotic exudates. The pulmonary complications like pneumonia, bronchitis, bronchiectasis, congestion andoedema were seen. The lungs were grossly emphysematous with areas of pulmonary collapse. The flukes were identified as Paragonimus westermani based on the micrometry and morphology. On histopathological examination yellowish, ovoid, distorted eggs of P. westermani were seen in the ruptured alveoli with infiltration of inflammatory cells and surrounded by hemosiderin laden macrophages in the lung parenchyma. The cross sections of adult P. westermani in thickened bronchioles with loss of cilia and had infiltration of inflammatory cells in the sub mucosa. The cross section of fluke had tegument with tegumental spines, vitellaria, intestine, testes, ovaries and uterus. The extensive fibrosis, thickening of alveolar epithelium and emphysematous changes in lung parenchyma were observed.