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Volume 27, Number 10—October 2021
Dispatch

Widespread Disease in Hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) Caused by Toxigenic Corynebacterium ulcerans

An MartelComments to Author , Filip Boyen, Jörg Rau, Tobias Eisenberg, Andreas Sing, Anja Berger, Koen Chiers, Sarah Van Praet, Serge Verbanck, Muriel Vervaeke, and Frank Pasmans
Author affiliations: Ghent University, Merelbeke, Belgium (A. Martel, F. Boyen, K. Chiers, S. Van Praet, S. Verbanck, F. Pasmans); Chemical and Veterinary Analysis Agency Stuttgart, Fellbach, Germany (J. Rau); Hessian State Laboratory, Giessen, Germany (T. Eisenberg); Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority, Oberschleißheim, Germany (A. Sing, A. Berger); Agency for Nature and Forests, Brussels, Belgium (M. Vervaeke)

Main Article

Figure 1

Toxigenic Corynebacterium ulcerans as cause of widespread disease in hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus), Flanders, Belgium. A) Locations of 81 hedgehogs with lesions on the head or limbs from 4 regions in Flanders, Belgium, who were tested for C. ulcerans. Green, blue, black, and yellow indicate proportion of positive animals; gray indicates proportion of negative animals. Regions: A, Geraardsbergen; B, Merelbeke; C, Herenthout; D, Oudsbergen. Scale bar = 50 km. B) Representative clinical state with necrotizing facial dermatitis in 1 male hedgehog from Merelbeke. C) Ulcerative dermatitis with suppurative exudation and inflammation extending into the subcutis and underlying skeletal muscles. Hematoxylin and eosin stained; scale bar = 100 μm. D) Microcolonies of gram-positive bacilli in suppurative exudate. Gram stain; scale bar = 10 μm.

Figure 1. Toxigenic Corynebacterium ulcerans as cause of widespread disease in hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus), Flanders, Belgium. A) Locations of 81 hedgehogs with lesions on the head or limbs from 4 regions in Flanders, Belgium, who were tested for C. ulcerans. Green, blue, black, and yellow indicate proportion of positive animals; gray indicates proportion of negative animals. Regions: A, Geraardsbergen; B, Merelbeke; C, Herenthout; D, Oudsbergen. Scale bar = 50 km. B) Representative clinical state with necrotizing facial dermatitis in 1 male hedgehog from Merelbeke. C) Ulcerative dermatitis with suppurative exudation and inflammation extending into the subcutis and underlying skeletal muscles. Hematoxylin and eosin stained; scale bar = 100 μm. D) Microcolonies of gram-positive bacilli in suppurative exudate. Gram stain; scale bar = 10 μm.

Main Article

Page created: June 28, 2021
Page updated: September 19, 2021
Page reviewed: September 19, 2021
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