Prevalence and clinico-sonographic evaluation of bacterial urinary tract infections in dogs

Abstract

Bacterial urinary tract infections (UTIs) represent one of the most frequently diagnosed conditions in companion animals. In many cases, treatment is initiated with an empirical course of antibiotics before confirmation through microbiological identification is performed. A study was conducted at Veterinary Clinical Complex, College of Veterinary Sciences, Guwahati, Assam, India to examine 240 dogs registered with symptoms of urological disorders over a period of six months. The study found that 18 dogs were found positive for bacterial urinary tract infection based on clinical symptoms, haematobiochemical examination and urinalysis. After screening of suspected dogs to be affected with UTI, these cases were subjected to ultrasonography (USG) of abdomen. The most prominent ultrasonographic findings observed were cystitis, cystic calculi and renal degeneration. Hence, ultrasonography can be considered as the most commonly used imaging technique for early diagnosis of various urinary tract diseases.