Vet World Vol.17 March Article - 17
Research Article
Veterinary World, 17(3): 658-665
https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2024.658-665
A pilot study on the pulmonary anthracosis in stray dogs of Kathmandu Valley, Nepal: A potential public health threat for future
1 Department of Veterinary Pathology and Clinics, Agriculture and Forest University, Chitwan, 44202, Nepal.
2 KAT Centre, Kathmandu, 44600, Nepal.
3 Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety Centre for Asia Pacific, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50100, Thailand.
4 Tifton Veterinary Diagnostic and Investigational Laboratory, University of Georgia, Tifton, 31793 Georgia, USA.
Background and Aim: Kathmandu is a densely populated metropolitan city in Nepal. In recent years, however, the metropolis has been ranked as one of the most polluted cities worldwide. Both humans and animals are susceptible to various respiratory diseases due to chronic exposure to polluted air. Due to the relative similarities in the anatomical structure and physiological functions of the respiratory system between humans and dogs, polluted environments may lead to respiratory illness in similar ways in both species living in the valley. On the basis of information on the air quality in the valley, this study was conceived to assess pulmonary illness in street dogs to discern the health hazards caused by polluted air.
Materials and Methods: A total of 76 dogs with clinical signs of tachypnea, dyspnea, sneezing, coughing, mucopurulent discharge, moderate hyperthermia, and anorexia admitted from July 2020 to November 2020 in Animal Nepal for treatment were included in this study. Among them, 24 animals responded to treatment, and 52 dogs died during their stay in the hospital. The 52 dead animals were necropsied, and the lesions that resembled pulmonary anthracosis were further studied grossly and histologically in a blinded fashion by trained veterinary pathologists.
Results: Significant morphological alterations were observed in the lungs and associated lymph nodes of 25 animals, indicating pulmonary anthracosis. Gross morphological changes included multiple black foci with hemorrhage, congestion, nodular, and emphysema on the parietal and visceral surfaces of the lungs. The alveolar septa and visceral pleura exhibited deposition of black particles. Congestion, emphysema, and inflammatory exudates were also detected in the lung tissues and lymph nodes.
Conclusion: The clinical, gross, and microscopic findings accurately resembled those of pulmonary anthracosis. This life-threatening condition in stray canines may be caused by a critical level of air pollution from different sources and carbon emissions from vehicles. To protect animals and humans living in the Kathmandu Valley, concerned government and non-government agencies should work toward reducing air pollution levels as soon as possible.
Keywords: air pollution, histopathology, Kathmandu, pulmonary anthracosis, respiratory disease, stray dogs.
How to cite this article: Thapa S, Bhatta R, Puri B, Bashyal R, Kunwar R, Shrestha SP, Regmi G, and Pal P (2024) A pilot study on the pulmonary anthracosis in stray dogs of Kathmandu Valley, Nepal: A potential public health threat for future, Veterinary World, 17(3): 658-665.
Received: 26-12-2023 Accepted: 26-02-2024 Published online: 21-03-2024
Corresponding authors: E-mails:
DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2024.658-665
Copyright: Thapa, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/ publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
