Advice on Disease Control

[threebuoys]

Treatment with formalin is not part of our standard QT protocol. Generally, it is recommended for treatment of brooklynella. Personally, I've never had to use it. Some concern about human exposure to formalin/formaldehyde has been expressed over the years.

If you choose to use it, be sure to research the appropriate dosage and handling procedures.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I am fine not having the chromis if thats the fate of my tank. They are like you said, pretty and inexpensive so it is sad to see something like this happen though. I just want to be well informed as to not endanger other fish I would like to keep that are more expensive as well.

From reading it seems that @Humblefish has a nice write up for treating fish with formalin to keep things healthy from the start during QT with these types of fish susceptible to uronema. Since all of my fish are currently in QT, is this something I should consider doing to them all since they were exposed? if so is this the appropriate stuff linked below?

Formalin will not work for the intercellular form of Uronema, only the external form that seahorses and seadragons get. The big problem with Uronema infections is that they begin deep in the muscles and internal organs of the fish. By the time you see external lesions, the disease is too far advanced for bath treatments. Years ago, I experimented with using DMSO to try and pull the formalin deeper into the fish's tissue - that failed.

Here is an older article that I wrote on this topic.

Uronema / Red Band Disease - Hemdal

Red Band Syndrome in Marine Fishes: Caused by the Protozoan; Uronema sp. Jay Hemdal Introduction: This moderately common disease of certain species of marine fish is so often misdiagnosed that most aquarists apply incorrect treatment methods...

www.reef2reef.com

At the time, I was experimenting with chloroquine and other treatments. Since then, I've given up trying to treat the internal form when I see lesions. I manage it by avoiding species known to have issues with it (Chromis, some anthias, yellow wrasse) and by quarantining all fish so that IF it shows up, it is in an isolation tank. Thinking back, I've only had one case where I could confirm it was contagious....I added a group of green chromis to a quarantine system that had a previous batch of fish well started on quarantine. The green chromis started to develop Uronema and a couple of the previously unaffected fish later did as well.

Jay

 

[boyer.michael.s]

Formalin will not work for the intercellular form of Uronema, only the external form that seahorses and seadragons get. The big problem with Uronema infections is that they begin deep in the muscles and internal organs of the fish. By the time you see external lesions, the disease is too far advanced for bath treatments. Years ago, I experimented with using DMSO to try and pull the formalin deeper into the fish's tissue - that failed.

Here is an older article that I wrote on this topic.

Uronema / Red Band Disease - Hemdal

Red Band Syndrome in Marine Fishes: Caused by the Protozoan; Uronema sp. Jay Hemdal Introduction: This moderately common disease of certain species of marine fish is so often misdiagnosed that most aquarists apply incorrect treatment methods...

www.reef2reef.com

At the time, I was experimenting with chloroquine and other treatments. Since then, I've given up trying to treat the internal form when I see lesions. I manage it by avoiding species known to have issues with it (Chromis, some anthias, yellow wrasse) and by quarantining all fish so that IF it shows up, it is in an isolation tank. Thinking back, I've only had one case where I could confirm it was contagious....I added a group of green chromis to a quarantine system that had a previous batch of fish well started on quarantine. The green chromis started to develop Uronema and a couple of the previously unaffected fish later did as well.

Jay

Thank you for the information. @Jay Hemdal
So if you were in my shoes would you just continue on with the tank as is and just avoid those fish like you said or would you start everything over to eliminate it from the current tank and still avoid those fish?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Thank you for the information. @Jay Hemdal
So if you were in my shoes would you just continue on with the tank as is and just avoid those fish like you said or would you start everything over to eliminate it from the current tank and still avoid those fish?

You can't really eliminate Uronema. It is pretty common in aquariums - people have been able to isolate it from 20 to 100% of tanks, depending on how they look for it.

IMO - I would just ride this infection out, running the fish through a regular quarantine, and then moving forward, just avoid problematic species, of buy those from a dealer who quarantines them for 40+ days (let the losses be on them, not you).

Jay

 

[boyer.michael.s]

You can't really eliminate Uronema. It is pretty common in aquariums - people have been able to isolate it from 20 to 100% of tanks, depending on how they look for it.

IMO - I would just ride this infection out, running the fish through a regular quarantine, and then moving forward, just avoid problematic species, of buy those from a dealer who quarantines them for 40+ days (let the losses be on them, not you).

Jay

Understood. Thank you for your help.

 

[4FordFamily]

I agree with you that this is most likely uronema. Thank you for the help with that.

I'm just trying to use this as a learning experience now as there is still a lot I am not understanding. I understand that uronema is 99% the likelihood here. I seem to understand that my DT now has uronema as a result and it cannot be control with a fallow period so I will forever have uronema in my DT even after going through this fallow period I am doing for whatever else was going on with the other fish. This raises several questions for me though.

1. What I am not understanding is, when in my situation where I have 3 chromis, 1 sick 2 not sick(as of right now at least), do I assume they all have uronema or is it possible that the other 2 do not have it and never get it even living in a tank with it? If I am to assume they all have it, is the course of action to get rid of these fish as there is no treatment to rid them of it?

2. Being that the DT has uronema, can/should I no longer keep them(chromis) as well as some other fish that have been known to have problems with this such as butterflies and anthias? You have said that there is not a treatment to get rid of it so how do you protect future fish from getting it from your DT?

3. Being that my tang and cardinals have been in contact with the chromis and live in a DT that has uronema, will these fish now always pose a threat of introducing uronema to any tank it goes into in the future because of being exposed to it?

4. On the other hand, what if a DT did not have uronema? How do you keep it from getting in? What protocol would need to be taken to do that? I read a post from @4FordFamily where he says " I don't personally worry about uronema for anything other than new additions." and "I treat all new fish as if they have it to be safe." What kind of treatment are you to give fish for something that is being said you can't treat? Is the referred to treatment simply observation only to see if it shows signs and if it does show signs of uronema remove the fish and move on?

I am sure I will think of more. Again, I appreciate everyone who has chimed in. I have a mind that can't let something go until I have all the answers to the question I conjure up in my head. Sorry for the annoyance this has probably turned into. You guys are great.

I used CP or metroplex for treating uronema prophylactically. I know my tanks have had uronema in the past but it hasn’t impacted any of my newly quarantined fish in years.