Analysis of cerebrospinal fluid in healthy rabbits and rabbits with clinically suspected encephalitozoonosis

Samples of uncontaminated cerebrospinal fluid ( csf ) were collected from the cisterna magna of 20 healthy laboratory rabbits and 21 pet rabbits with vestibular disease and/or paresis due to clinically suspected encephalitozoonosis. In the healthy rabbits' csf the leucocyte count was ≤4 leucocytes/μl (median 1·5 μl) and the concentration of protein ranged from 0·13 to 0·31 g/l (median 0·24 g/l). In the diseased rabbits, the number of leucocytes ranged from 1 to 87/μl (median 15/μl; P<0·001), and the concentration of protein ranged from 0·31 to 1·54 g/l (median 0·79 g/l; P<0·001); a cytological evaluation showed that they had greater numbers of lymphocytes and monocytes. It was concluded that encephalitozoonosis in rabbits is characterised by lymphomonocytic pleocytosis in csf .