Aspergillosis and Penicilliosis

• Cause: Aspergillus spp. and Penicillium spp., which are ascomycetes in the family Aspergillaceae, order Eurotiales.
• First Described: Invasive aspergillosis was first described in 1815 in a jackdaw bird (Meyer). Aspergillosis was first described in dogs in 1897 and in cats in 1982.
• Affected Hosts: Dogs, cats, humans, and a variety of other animal species.
• Geographic Distribution: Worldwide.
• Primary Mode of Transmission: Inhalation of fungal spores (conidia) from the environment.
• Major Clinical Signs: Sinonasal aspergillosis and penicilliosis: nasal discharge, sneezing, epistaxis, depigmentation of the nares in dogs. Sino-orbital aspergillosis (cats): exophthalmos, third eyelid prolapse, and oral mass lesions or ulcers in the pterygopalatine fossa. Disseminated aspergillosis: inappetence, weight loss, spinal pain, lameness, pelvic limb paresis or paralysis, cough, vomiting, and tachypnea.
• Differential Diagnoses: Sinonasal aspergillosis: neoplasia, inflammatory rhinitis, oronasal fistulas, cryptococcosis, nasal mites (dogs), foreign bodies, and polyps (cats). Disseminated aspergillosis and penicilliosis: bacterial discospondylitis, bacterial pyelonephritis, and other systemic mold infections, especially paecilomycosis.
• Human Health Significance: Human Aspergillus infections are acquired from the environment. Aspergillus fumigatus is the most prevalent airborne fungal pathogen in developed countries. The global burden of aspergillosis is high; approximately 3 million people have chronic pulmonary aspergillosis and almost 5 million people have allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis. Ten million immunocompromised patients per year are at risk of developing invasive aspergillosis, resulting in 200,000 new cases per annum, with a mortality rate of > 50%. Direct transmission from affected dogs and cats to humans does not occur.
© 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.