[Significance of the sampling points and the aerobic microbiological culture for the diagnosis of respiratory infections in reptiles].

Respiratory diseases play an important role in reptiles kept in captivity. Microbiological examinations are described as an essential part of the diagnostic possibilities. Therefore the aim of this study was to collect data on the usefulness of results obtained after aerobic culture (sheepblood, brilliantgreen, sabouraud's agar) of swabs and tracheal lavages following standardized sampling. Respiratory symptoms were found in 24.3% of the snakes, 16.5% of the tortoises/turtles and 1.6% of the lizards presented in the clinic for birds and reptiles at the university Leipzig. Altogether, 52% of the examined samples were found to be bacteriologically and 31% mycologically of pathologic significance. The tracheal lavage proved to be more sensitive in comparison to swabs taken from the pharynx. The bacteria most often found in the samples were Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Stenotrophomonas maltophila. Mycologic culture revealed Aspergillus sp. and yeast most often. In boids and pythons, the highest number of bacteriologic results assessed to be of pathological significance were found (75%). Mycologically, samples from tortoises were found most often to have a result of pathological significance (48%). To summarize the aerobic cultivation on standard media (in this study: Columbia-Agar with sheep blood, brilliant-green-, Sabouraud-Agar) can be recommended as an initial diagnostic measure in reptiles presented with respiratory symptoms; further pathogens (eg, viral examination, Mycoplasma) should be checked additionally.