Symptom: Bent Spine
Definition: If you look at your fish from above and you see a bent spine or an S curvature, there are several possible causes.
Causes and Treatments
Birth Defect: Bent spine is a common genetic birth defect and should be culled out. Fish with this condition should never be allowed to breed. Sometimes instead forming an "S" shape, birth defects result in a "U" shaped spine.
Malnutrition or Scolosis: Malnutrition may cause spinal deformities so take care to check your fish's nutritional requirements and feed fish every day. Lack of Vitamin C is sometimes identified as a cause of scolosis, so take care to properly store your fish food and be sure it is not too old. A good rule of thumb is to toss out any foods that have been opened for 6 months. Fresh food may be a good source of vitamin C as well.
Injury: Fish may become injured from fleeing (fight or flight reactions), jumping against things when spawning, aggression, during tank maintenance, etc. If this occurs, keep the water pristine and reduce the cause of the aggression or flight response. In severe cases fish can break their spine.
Electricity:΅If your fish is outside in a pond, a bent spine can be caused by lightening strikes. Equipment leaking electricity in the tank can also result in a bent spine if the fish becomes grounded.
Myco-bacteriosis or Fish Tuberculosis: A bent spine is one of the signs that the fish in infected with bacteria called Mycobacteria. Some people refer to this condition as "fish tuberculosis" or "fish TB." Mycobacteria (there are several kinds) are gram-positive bacteria that infect slowly and gradually cause more and more problems for the fish.
Other symptoms may include emaciation, redness, lethargy and exophthalmia (pop-eye). If this infection spreads to the skeleton of the fish, the spine may bend. There is not currently any treatment for mycobacteriosis. Isolation or euthanasia are recommended to avoid spreading.
Many people believe that fish that are over crowded and lack nutrious food are far more susceptible to this infection than fish kept in good conditions. So it is a disease easier to prevent than cure. Read more about Mycobacteria
here.
Mycobacteria can cause "granulomatous skin disease" or "fish handlers disease" in humans. It enters through breaks in the skin. If you suspect fish TB, avoid placing hands or arms with open sores in the aquarium. Cleaning hands with anti-bacterial gel hand sanitizers should be done as a precaution. People with a compromised immune system should avoid coming in contact with aquariums where fish TB is suspected.
Other causes: Internal swellings, tumors, or not being able to expel eggs can also cause bent fish because the pressure or pain from the swelling/tumor causes them to favor one side.
Πηγη:
http://thegab.org/Articles/DiagnosisChart.html#Spine
ΥΓ R.I.P. Betty Harris, the driving force behind thegab.org
.