We've got to wait on an answer from FranM I suppose. From the information given, this is what I gather.mikev wrote:What bothers ME in this thread is the very first sentence
It seems to link Ich outbreak and/or treatment to the Skinny condition and indicate rapid loss of weight rather than gradual as more usual. Thus asking for clarifications, we may be actually dealing with something totally different here. (Example: gill damage due to Ick-->oxygen deficiency-->apathy-->... )
The the clown loach is the pre-existing fish showing the only visual symptoms of the disease, and also had the condition years ago, meaning it might never have been eradicated, his immune system might have been fighting it on all along.
One brings ich, possibly a secondary infection of some sort too, and the fish rapidly deteriorates as it was not healthy to start with.
That's why I thought hex as one of the conditions because I know no other common "parasite" that a fish can be infected with for years without visual symptoms.
What is the incubation time for other flat and round worms?
Maybe if the timeframe is established, one might narrow the problems.
Also, it's not unlikely a bacterial infection to be involved on top of parasitic if the symptoms have developed really fast.