Diagnosis and Testing Procedure and Visual Signs to this Disease

[Daveyo]

Attention to all VETS:

Be so advised to do this test procedure and to look for these visual signs to visually and clinically confirm that the disease is present in the dog.

The dog will be showing some or a combination the following physical symptoms as follows:

Goop in the Eyes > Distemper will cause damage to the tear ducts.

Nasal Discharge > Please inspect carefully > Canine Distemper usually gives green and yellow nasal discharges whereas Kennel cough is usually white or clear in most cases.

Hardening of the Pads

The teeth enamel turning brown and leaves rings > Requires dental work after its cured of this disease.

Twitching developing rapidly on the body > NDV will take care of most of this problem.

High Fevers > Usually present for 2-3 days at onset with temperatures between 104 to 106 degrees.

Labor Breathing > This is a sign of Pneumonia in the lungs

Stools are very soupy and smelly.

Stumbling or acting like its drunk while trying to walk. > Paralysis setting in Requires immediate NDV body injection and NDV-CSF tap ASAP.  Dog will be paralyzed within two weeks.

Seizures starting or the Chewing Gum Stage  > Requires immediate body injection and NDV-CSF tap done same day!!!!

If some of these signs are present or the dog is a suspect in the early stages please do this test to diagnosis clinically and it takes only 30 minutes to find out right inside your clinic or hospital.

The most reliable test to confirm distemper,the person needs to do a Brush Border slide/smear of the bladder  transitional epithelium of the inside lining from the bladder. Stain with Dif-Quick. These cells ALWAYS have  inclusions. So, easy to collect, easy to stain (quick dip) and instantly diagnosed with inclusions in these cells  which will stain a beautiful carmine red color and para nuclear in the cytoplasm of infected cells. About 90% of the  bladder cells will be positive for inclusions in the early stages of distemper.  This is good for at least the first  21 days from onset of the disease.  After this point, it gets harder to detect as the disease progresses further in  the stages and the physical clinical signs will become quite obvious.

Any Qualified medical person can tell you how to get these cells from the bladder. Use the Urinary catheter. Empty  the bladder and flush this with saline and collect some of the last saline. Spin down the saline and remove the  cells. Place on slide and dry stain with diff-quick. Very common stain used by most medics or lab people who use  medical microscopy. Everyone? I should hope so. Very fast, very cheap, very accurate for Dx of distemper and the  results can be seen in about 30 minutes.  Rarely inclusions can be seen in the red cells. I have never seen  inclusions in the conjunctiva.  An IFA test of the conjunctiva to test for inclusions is available. Don’t wait for  test results to come back.  Time is of the essence. Wait for the test results after treating!!!!!.  If wrong no  adverse reactions if right you are ahead of the game for stopping the distemper virus. If NEGATIVE> then either  kennel cough or respiratory Herpes or Toxoplasmosis. This test can all be done inside the VET Clinic with no  problems and also no danger to anyone in or out of the same area. A very relative safe technique.  To date, this  test has never failed for us and is extremely very accurate and saves time in making the right diagnosis.  


Also you have other options to confirm Distemper if still suspect and the above test comes negative to be absolutely certain and it is as follows:   For any dog past the 6 day window, you have the option to get an MRI scan of the cord and the brain of which lesions will show up like a sore thumb and this confirms clinically the animal has Distemper and the other is a CSF tap of the spinal fluid to be sent out to Antech Labs in America to confirm by doing the Distemper Antibody test.  Any positive reading is clinical and the animal has confirmed Distemper.

Revision History

January 1, 2008