Abstract

In July 2005, a routine urinalysis on a 10-year-old intact female Victorian koala (Phascolarctos cinereus victor) revealed hemorrhagic cystitis. Medical treatment over the following 6 months, guided by serial urine culture and sensitivity results was incompletely effective. An abdominal ultrasound exam found two uroliths present in the urinary bladder. A cystotomy was successfully performed and analysis of the uroliths found them to be composed of calcium phosphate. Postsurgical anorexia led to significant weight loss, so a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube was placed as a means to deliver nutritional support.² The koala was periodically supplemented through the feeding tube with a blend of eucalyptus leaves, water, and a human nutritional powder (Portagen^®, Mead Johnson, Evansville, IN, USA). After 8 months, the koala’s appetite stabilized enough to allow removal of the feeding tube.

Due to persistent dysuria, a repeat ultrasound exam in January 2007 found two additional uroliths and a mass associated with the urinary bladder. During a second cystotomy, the soft tissue mass was located at the trigone making complete surgical removal impossible. Histopathologic evaluation identified a soft tissue sarcoma, likely a fibrosarcoma or fibroleiomyoma. At the time of this writing, the koala remains well following the second cystotomy.

Two postmortem cases of cystitis with fragmented calculi have been reported in koalas¹ but to our knowledge, this is the first antemortem report and first cystotomy performed in this species. Application of a PEG tube in a koala has also not been previously reported.

Literature Cited

1.  Canfield, P.J. 1989. A survey of urinary tract disease in New South Wales koalas. Aust Vet J. 66(4):103–106.

2.  Mauterer Jr., J.V. 1995. Endoscopic and nonendoscopic percutaneous gastrotomy tube placement. In: Bonagura J.D. (ed.). Kirk’s Current Veterinary Therapy XII Small Animal Practice. WB Saunders, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 669–674.