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Krajem svibnja 2015. godine u Laboratorij za parazitologiju, Hrvatskog veterinarskog instituta, Zagreb, Hrvatska dostavljena je krv ovna iz okolice Benkovca sa sumnjom na piroplazmozu. Ovan je uz potpornu terapiju vitaminima AD3E i B-kompleksa liječen imidokarbom (Imizol® 0,5 mL s/c) i oksitetraciklinom (Geomicin retard® 5 mL i/m) te je za pet dana prestao pokazivati kliničke znakove bolesti. U razmazu krvi pronađena su periferno smještena intraeritrocitarna tjelešca, a sekvenciranjem odsječka 16S rRNK i MSP4 gena dokazali smo vrstu Anaplasma ovis, dok DNK drugih uzročnika nije bila prisutna. Ovim istraživanjem smo po prvi puta dokazali vrstu A. ovis u Hrvatskoj, ali i u Jugoistočnoj Europi. Od danas priznatih osam vrsta anaplazmi, anaplazmozu malih preživača uzrokuju tri vrste A. phagocytophilum, A. capra i A. ovis od kojih je A. phagocytophilum dokazana u Hrvatskoj. Prema navodima veterinara Veterinarske ambulante Benkovac opisani klinički znaci bolesti su česti u ovaca i ovnova dopremljenih s drugih područja Hrvatska i nikada nisu uočeni u životinja mlađih od pet mjeseci. Treba naglasiti da osim Imizolom veterinari na području Benkovca oboljele ovce uvijek liječe i tetraciklinima što predstavlja i lijek izbora, a oboljele životinje uspješno izliječe ukoliko lijekove apliciraju unutar pet dana od pojave kliničkih znakova bolesti. Vektor je krpelj Rhipicephalus bursa prisutan diljem Republike Hrvatske ujedno pronađen i na oboljelom ovnu. Stoga treba očekivati da je uzročnik prisutan i u drugim dijelovima Hrvatske., In late May 2015, a sample of ram blood with suspected piroplasmosis from the vicinity of Benkovac was delivered to the Laboratory for Parasitology of the Croatian Veterinary Institute in Zagreb, Croatia. Therapy with Imidocarb (Imizol 0.5 mL s/c) and oxytetracycline (Geomycin retard 5 mL i/m) was started immediately, with supportive therapy with vitamins AD3E and B-complex. The health status improved and clinical signs disappeared after five days, and the ram fully recovered. Peripherally located intraerythrocyte bodies were found in the blood smear, and Anaplasma ovis was confirmed by sequencing the 16S rRNA and MSP4 gene, while the DNA of other pathogens was not present. This research proved the presence of A. ovis in Croatia and in Southeast Europe for the first time. Of the eight species of Anaplasma recognized today, small ruminant anaplasmosis is caused by three species, A. phagocytophilum, A. capra and A. ovis, and to date only A. phagocytophilum has been proven in Croatia. According to veterinarians from the Benkovac Veterinary practice, the described clinical signs of the disease are common in sheep and rams introduced from non-endemic areas and have never been observed in animals younger than five months. It should be emphasized that in addition to Imisol, veterinarians in the Benkovac area always treat sick sheep with tetracyclines, the drug of choice for Anaplasma treatment, and sick animals are successfully cured if treatment is administered within five days of the onset of clinical signs. The vector is the tick Rhipicephalus bursa, which is present throughout the Republic of Croatia and was also found on the infected ram, so it is to be expected that the causative agent is also present elsewhere in Croatia.

Invasive alien crayfish threaten freshwater biodiversity and native crayfish fauna. However, the invasion success of an otherwise successful crayfish invader may be compromised by local environmental conditions or presence of local pathogens which can affect invader’s physiology, immune status, health, and fitness. Here we report the occurence of idiopathic necrotizing hepatopancreatitis and changes in the immune response in the signal caryfish, one of the most successful freshwater invaders, in a recently invaded Korana River in Croatia. We sampled and histologically analysed 73 signal crayfish individuals collected in three consecutive years (2018-2020) and used several standard immune parameters (encapsulation response, hemocyte count, phenoloxidaze activity and total prophenoloxidaze) to: i) compare immune response of the signal crayfish along its invasion range, ii) analyze effects of specific predictors (water temperature, crayfish abundance and body condition) on its immune response changes. Our results show very high prevalence of lesions in hepatopancreas of signal crayfish (>91%), with 14% of individuals displaying heavy and 51% moderate necroses and/or inflammation in the tubular and interstitial structures of the organ. Heavy histopathological changes in hepatopancreas were correlated with lower organosomatic condition. Immune response exhibited significant differences along the invasion range of the signal crayfish and was mostly affected by water temperature and population abundance. Obtained results offer a baseline for elucidating the role of immunocompetence in the signal crayfish invasion in the Korana River, while aetiology of necrotizing hepatopancreatitis needs to be further investigated to determine its potential impact on signal crayfish invasion success.

Enquadramento: O quotidiano familiar de uma criança com doença crónica é modificado decorrente das exigências recorrentes da doença. Os irmãos destas crianças podem receber menos atenção, tanto dos pais, quanto da restante família, que podem interessar-se mais pela criança doente e não da mesma forma pelo irmão considerado saudável. Objetivos: Compilar perceções de irmãos de crianças hospitalizadas por doença crónica. Metodologia: Participaram do estudo irmãos de crianças diagnosticadas com doenças crónicas, com idades entre os 8 e os 16 anos. Utilizaram-se entrevistas abertas, que foram gravadas, transcritas e submetidas à análise. Resultados: Apenas 4 irmãos puderam ser entrevistados. Na análise das entrevistas, emergiram 4 categorias de resultados (Enfrentamento da doença do irmão; Reestruturação familiar; Experiências a partir da hospitalização do irmão; e Experiências de exclusão). Conclusão: Os irmãos das crianças com doenças crónicas estão em situação de vulnerabilidade e exclusão, demonstram dificuldades em lidar com as suas perceções e sentimentos, o que mostra a importância de integrar o irmão no processo de enfermagem. Background: The daily family life of a child with chronic disease changes according to the illness’s demands. The siblings of these children may receive less attention from both parents, as well as from the rest of the family, who may focus more on the sick child and not in a similar way on the healthy sibling. Objectives: To compile perceptions of siblings of children hospitalized due to chronic disease. Methodology: Siblings of children diagnosed with chronic diseases, aged between 8 and 16 years, participated in the study. We used open interviews, recording, transcribing, and submitting them to analysis. Results: We were able to interview only four siblings. In the interviews’ analysis, four categories of results (Coping with the sibling’s disease; Family restructuring, Experiences resulting from the sibling’s hospitalization; and Experiences of exclusion) emerged. Conclusion: The siblings of children with chronic diseases live in a situation of vulnerability and exclusion, demonstrate difficulties in dealing with their perceptions and feelings, which proves it is essential to involve the sibling in the nursing process. Marco contextual: La vida diaria familiar de un niño con enfermedad crónica se modifica de acuerdo con las necesidades recurrentes de la enfermedad. Los hermanos de dichos niños pueden recibir menos atención, tanto por parte de los padres como del resto de la familia, quien puede mostrar más interés por el menor enfermo y no tanto por el hermano considerado sano. Objetivos: Recopilar las percepciones de los hermanos de niños hospitalizados por enfermedad crónica. Metodología: Participaron en el estudio hermanos de niños diagnosticados con una enfermedad crónica, con edades comprendidas entre los 8 y los 16 años. Se utilizaron entrevistas abiertas, que se grabaron, transcribieron y sometieron a análisis. Resultados: Solo se pudo entrevistar a 4 hermanos. En el análisis de las entrevistas, surgieron 4 categorías de resultados (Afrontamiento de la enfermedad del hermano; Restructuración familiar; Experiencias a partir de la hospitalización del hermano; y Experiencias de exclusión). Conclusión: Los hermanos de los niños con enfermedades crónicas están en una situación de vulnerabilidad y exclusión, y demostraron dificultades al lidiar con sus percepciones y sentimientos, lo que muestra la importancia de integrar al hermano en el proceso de enfermería.

The microscopic analysis of cytological samples is a simple, fast, cheap and minimally invasive method for diagnosing pathologic changes in cats, used routinely in many veterinary clinics. This research has examined all changes that were diagnosed in cats from cytological samples delivered to the Department of Veterinary Pathology from 2009 to 2018. The diagnosed changes were classified as one of the following categories: “neoplasia”, “inflammation”, “other pathologic changes” or “nondiagnostic samples”, based on the reported criteria for a cytological examination. For each change, breed, age, gender and anatomic location were analysed by using statistics to determine whether these variables were connected to the diagnosed change. The total number of examined samples, which originated from an approximately equal number of males (49%) and females (51%), was 306. The most frequent change was neoplasia (44%), while inflammation (20%), other pathologic changes (18%) and nondiagnostic samples (18%) were detected in a similar number of the cats. Round cell neoplasia was the most frequent neoplasia (33%), followed by mesenchymal (31%) and epithelial neoplasia (28%). The most common breed was domestic short-haired, but there was no connection between the breed and the category. Pathologic changes were diagnosed in altogether 10 organ systems, of which the skin was the most frequent. The average age of the examined cats was 8.4 years (y), with a variation between categories: the average age of the cats with neoplasia was 9.2 y, with inflammation 8.0 y, with other pathologic changes 8.6 y and with nondiagnostic samples 7.7 y. The most frequent type of inflammation was purulent, followed by pyogranulomatous inflammation. Other types of inflammation were diagnosed in a low number of the cats. Reactive hyperplasia of lymph nodes was the most frequent among other diagnosed pathologic changes. In conclusion, the most frequently diagnosed pathologic changes in the cats were neoplasia, which corresponds to literature data. The most frequent neoplasia was round cell neoplasia, which is the most common neoplasia in cats. The skin was the most frequent tissue sampled, probably due to easy accessibility.

Introduction: Apicomplexan hemogregarines of the genus Hepatozoon, described in more than 300 animal species, are transmitted by various hematophagous arthropods. In the current report we provide the first morphological description, pathological changes and molecular characterization of a Hepatozoon sp. from a stone marten. Materials and Methods: A paralyzed young adult wild female stone marten from Western Croatia was euthanized for determination of cause of illness. During necropsy representative tissue samples were collected for histology and molecular analyses. Abscess content was sampled for bacterial culture and ectoparasites for morphological determination. Results: Necropsy revealed cachexia, head and neck abscesses at the site of bite wounds and severe ectoparasitic infestation. Severe emaciation was caused by massive concurrent bacterial and parasitic infections. Cultivation and histology results confirmed β-hemolytic Streptococcus pyogenes and E. coli within multifocal to coalescing subcutaneous purulent lesions. Although no gross lesions were visible in the heart and cervical muscles, microscopic examination revealed numerous Hepatozoon meronts and released merozoites from ruptured meronts associated with granulomatous inflammation. Macrophages often contained 1.17- 3.12 µm round to oval intracytoplasmatic merozoites. Meronts were sporadically found in the liver, spleen and kidneys without an apparent local inflammation. Sequences of 666 bp fragment of 18S rRNA from the spleen, liver, heart and cervical muscle were identical to Hepatozoon “Badger type” (KU198330). Identical Hepatozoon DNA was confirmed with sequencing in Ixodes ricinus ticks from the stone marten, while fleas from the animal were negative. Conclusions: Infection with Hepatozoon sp. from a stone marten showed similar lesions and organ distribution to those described from different Hepatozoon sp. in other marten species.