Actinomycosis

(Lumpy Jaw Disease)

Dr. Krishna Khadka

Assistant Professsor
M.V.Sc (Veterinary Pathology)
IAAS, Paklihawa Campus
INTRODUCTION
• A chronic, infectious, progressive, indurated,
granulomatous, suppurative, abscess forming mostly in
mandible and maxilla of cattle, buffalo, pig, horse and
man.

•Also characterized by osteomyelitis of bone of skull in

cattle.
• Fistulous withers and poll evil : Chronic
suppurative granulomatous lesions of bursa of
ligamentum nuchae in horse.

• Tumor like enlargement of mammary gland in

pig
Etiology:
Actinomyces bovis
(A gram positive , non capsulated branching
filamentous bacteria that is normal inhabitant of
ruminant mouth.)
Epidemiology
• World wide distributed

• Incidence is higher in straw and silage fed

cattle, these feed coarse materials cause injury
to the buccal mucosa.
Predisposing factors
• Entry and transmission of organism through injury to buccal mucosa:
straw, hard feed

• Eruption of permanent teeth in young animals

• Physical hard material

• Oral infection by other organism

Source of infection
• Infection transmitted through discharges from
infected animals.

• Grazing on infected pastures

Pathogenesis
Normal inhabitant in oral cavity of animal(doesnot produce any toxin)

Enter through abrasion, injury of wounds in buccal mucosa caused by

coarse feed stuff during chewing.

Osteomylitis

Leads to chronic suppuration and granulomatous reaction

SYMPTOMS
– Anorexia due to pain during mastication and prehension
– Halitosis Bad smelling breadth
– Hypersalivation
– Abscess in mandible and swelling
- Loose teeth or missing teeth
– Initially, non draining but may develop into fistula tract and
discharge of thick, mucoid, yellowish purulent exudate. These
exudate contain sulphur granules which are white to yellow in
colour.
Actinomycosis in a cow. Note the typical enlargement of the mandible
GROSS FINDINGS
– Lumpy jaw (Swelling of jaw at mandible )
– Milliary nodules in lungs and mammary glands
– Discharge of sticky honey like purulent exudate
containing white to yellow coloured sulphur granules
– Rarefracion of bone Reduction in density
Lumpy jaw in a Holstein, showing the classic mandibular lesion of
suppurative and proliferative osteomyelitis caused by Actinomyces
bovis
Pyogranulomatous mandibularosteomyelitis
with fistulae formation
 MICROSCOPIC FINDINGS
– Osteomyelitis of mandible

– Central liquefactive necrosed area with colonies of GM +ve organism

surrounded by mononuclear and lymphocytes
– Colonies are bigger in size than actinobacillosis.

– The colonies appears as a basophilic mass, 20 microns or more in diameter,

surrounded by a zone of radially arrranged club shaped eosinophilic
projection. Beyond the radiating clubs, there is usually a zone of
neutrophils, surrounded by an outer area by mononuclear and
lymphocytes.
Macerated and bleached specimen of the
mandible

Rarefracion of bone
Actinomycosis in cattle, radiograph.
Actinomyces bovis, gram-stained smear, high power. Note the characteristic
branching nature of these slender gram-positive rods.
 •Diagnosis
– Symptoms and lesions

– Radiography: Reveals central radiolucent areas of osteomyelitis surrounded

by periosteal and fibrous tissue.
Differential Diagnosis
– Nocardiosis
– Actinobacillosis
– Botryomycosis
– Abscess in mouth
– Tuberculosis etc.