Have you asked your vet for IBD blood test for a boa ?

[drugaria]

I asked my vet for the IBD blood test for my new boa and he he said that I shouldn't worry about it , and that it is not a verry common test. I just wanted to have it done as a peace of mind. Snake is doing grate and is not sick by any means. But I'm still wondering is this test really so uncommon or perhaps way too expensive to be worth doing ?

[rabernet]

I didn't think that you could test for IBD with a blood test? I thought you had to take a biopsy of tissues?

[ladywhipple02]

I didn't think that you could test for IBD with a blood test? I thought you had to take a biopsy of tissues?

To test for inclusion bodies, yes, you have to do a biopsy... which is basically invasive surgury. It can cost a couple hundred dollars a pop, so it really isn't feasible for someone to test all their snakes.

It's really up to you: whether you're willing to spend the money and/or go through the recovery.

[frankykeno]

Here's an interesting link on that...

http://ex-epsilon.slu.se/archive/00000387/ (full PDF is available there for download)

Here's the abstract (I bolded the one part)....

Inclusion body disease (IBD) affecting boas and pythons is a serious and common disease. Boas can be clinically healthy carriers, which makes control of the disease difficult. The causative agent has not yet been confidently identified, and therefore there are no serodiagnostic tests available. Today, histopathologic examination of tissue biopsies is the recommended antemortem diagnostic method, but there are several disadvantages. The objective of this study was to compare the sensitivity of two diagnostic methods – liver biopsies and blood smears, and to evaluate ultrasoundguided needle biopsy of the liver. Sixteen clinically healthy boas aging from 1,5 months to 4 years or more, and from different collections in Sweden were used in the study. Blood samples for blood smears were collected from all snakes, liver biopsies by celiotomy were performed on fourteen, and ultrasoundguided needle biopsies on five. The blood smears were stained with May-Grünewald-Giemsa, and the tissue samples were after preparation stained with hematoxylin and eosin. They were then examined with light microscopy for intracytoplasmic eosinophilic inclusion bodies in hepatocytes or blood cells. Typical IBD-inclusions were found in liver biopsies from four of the snakes, but no inclusions were found in blood smears from the same animals. Sampling by ultrasoundguided needle biopsy resulted in representative samples. In conclusion, a blood smear is not a reliable diagnostic alternative to identify IBD-positive snakes compared to liver biopsies, as liver biopsy by celiotomy or needle biopsy is a more sensitive method. Ultrasound guided needle biopsy is a less invasive technique, but has less control of procedure complications.

[ladywhipple02]

Here's an interesting link on that...

http://ex-epsilon.slu.se/archive/00000387/ (full PDF is available there for download)

Here's the abstract (I bolded the one part)....

Inclusion body disease (IBD) affecting boas and pythons is a serious and common disease. Boas can be clinically healthy carriers, which makes control of the disease difficult. The causative agent has not yet been confidently identified, and therefore there are no serodiagnostic tests available. Today, histopathologic examination of tissue biopsies is the recommended antemortem diagnostic method, but there are several disadvantages. The objective of this study was to compare the sensitivity of two diagnostic methods – liver biopsies and blood smears, and to evaluate ultrasoundguided needle biopsy of the liver. Sixteen clinically healthy boas aging from 1,5 months to 4 years or more, and from different collections in Sweden were used in the study. Blood samples for blood smears were collected from all snakes, liver biopsies by celiotomy were performed on fourteen, and ultrasoundguided needle biopsies on five. The blood smears were stained with May-Grünewald-Giemsa, and the tissue samples were after preparation stained with hematoxylin and eosin. They were then examined with light microscopy for intracytoplasmic eosinophilic inclusion bodies in hepatocytes or blood cells. Typical IBD-inclusions were found in liver biopsies from four of the snakes, but no inclusions were found in blood smears from the same animals. Sampling by ultrasoundguided needle biopsy resulted in representative samples. In conclusion, a blood smear is not a reliable diagnostic alternative to identify IBD-positive snakes compared to liver biopsies, as liver biopsy by celiotomy or needle biopsy is a more sensitive method. Ultrasound guided needle biopsy is a less invasive technique, but has less control of procedure complications.

"You must spread some reputation around before giving it to frankykeno again."

[drugaria]

I was told biopsy is more accurate but performed only in dead animals

[ladywhipple02]

I was told biopsy is more accurate but performed only in dead animals

You're thinking necropsy. People have biopsies done on them all the time... to test for cancer.

[drugaria]

Yes thats what I meant necropsy,
Thanks, that makes sense he didn't wanted to get involved in a delicate procedure like this on a animal with no symptoms .

[frankykeno]

The problem is that boa's can be, as this article calls them, "clinically healthy carriers". In other words, they don't show any symptoms that would make a vet think to test them. That's why for Mike and I, quarantine procedures are very tight around here and we house the boas in a seperate room from the pythons and never allow them near each other or handle them on the same day, etc. Even those boas not in quarantine are fed after we are all done for the night with the ball pythons and have no reason to re-enter the BP room.

Bascially even for a boa like our son's Severus, whose been with us since he was a very young snake, it's like a semi-quarantine I guess you'd call it. Sev just is never around the bp's, never handled with them, etc.

[drugaria]

Yep , I'm doing the same thing, but how long should it be quarantined for ? is it safe to say till the boa reaches 2yrs ?