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CASE REPORT article

Front. Vet. Sci.
Sec. Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Medicine
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fvets.2025.1470605

Case Report: In vivo Detection of Neutrophil Extracellular Traps in a Dog with Thrombosis Induced by Bacterial Vasculitis

Provisionally accepted
Ju-Yun Kim Ju-Yun Kim Hyun-Jung Han Hyun-Jung Han *
  • Department of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care, College of Veterinary Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul, Republic of Korea

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    This case report describes NETosis as a cause of thrombosis in an 18.3 kg, 8-year-old intact male mixed-breed dog with bacterial vasculitis. The dog presented with sudden paresis of the thoracic limb, characterized by cyanosis, absent arterial pulse, and decreased peripheral blood glucose levels. Doppler ultrasound confirmed thrombosis in the dorsal common digital artery. Histopathology postamputation revealed bacterial vasculitis, thrombosis, and infarction, with immunohistochemical staining identifying extracellular citrullinated histone H3 (CitH3), indicative of NETs involvement. Treatment included antibiotics, pentoxifylline, and anticoagulants, showing transient improvement before disease progression and euthanasia due to respiratory signs. These findings suggest NETs as a potential therapeutic target for bacterial vasculitis in similar cases.

    Keywords: NEtosis, Thrombosis, bacterial vasculitis, dog, case report

    Received: 25 Jul 2024; Accepted: 10 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Kim and Han. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Hyun-Jung Han, Department of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care, College of Veterinary Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul, Republic of Korea

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