Topic:Antibiotics
Antibiotics are medications used to treat bacterial infections in horses. They work by either killing bacteria or inhibiting their growth, aiding the horse's immune system in overcoming the infection. Commonly used antibiotics in equine medicine include penicillin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, and gentamicin. The selection of an antibiotic depends on factors such as the type of bacteria, the site of infection, and the horse's health status. Responsible use of antibiotics is essential to minimize the risk of resistance. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the efficacy, administration, and impact of antibiotics on equine health.
Mass envenomation of a mare and foal by bees. The clinical course of toxic envenomation of a mare and her foal after an attack by a swarm of bees in the Upper Hunter Valley of New South Wales is described. Early agitation and urticaria were followed by more severe systemic clinical signs within 18 h. There was severe, generalised angioedema, rhabdomyolysis, hypovolaemia, gastrointestinal stasis and renal injury. A particular feature in the mare was almost maniacal behaviour during the first 48 h. Clinical pathological examination showed evidence of haemoconcentration, intravascular haemolysis, thrombocytopenia, azotaemia, rhabdomyolysis a...
Efficacy of gallium maltolate against Lawsonia intracellularis infection in a rabbit model. Antimicrobial efficacy against Lawsonia intracellularis is difficult to evaluate in vitro, thus, the effects of gallium maltolate's (GaM) were investigated in a rabbit model for equine proliferative enteropathy (EPE). Juvenile (5-6-week-old) does were infected with 3.0 × 10(8) L. intracellularis/rabbit and allocated into three groups (n = 8). One week postinfection, one group was treated with GaM, 50 mg/kg; one, with doxycycline, 5 mg/kg; and one with a sham-treatment (control). Feces and blood were collected daily and weekly, respectively, to verify presence of L. intracellularis fec...
Fosfomycin: Uses and potentialities in veterinary medicine. Fosfomycin (FOS) is a natural bactericidal broad-spectrum antibiotic which acts on proliferating bacteria by inhibiting cell wall and early murein/peptidoglycan synthesis. Bactericidal activity is evident against Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria and can also act synergistically with other antibiotics. Bacterial resistance to FOS may be natural or acquired. Other properties of this drug include inhibition of bacterial adhesion to epithelial cells, exopolysaccharide biofilm penetration, immunomodulatory effect, phagocytosis promotion and protection against the nephrotoxicity caused by ot...
Stability of 1% voriconazole solution in a constant-rate infusion pump for topical ocular delivery to horses. To establish the effect of storage in a constant-rate infusion (CRI) pump on the sterility and stability of voriconazole 1% solution. Methods: Nine vials of voriconazole (Vfend(®) I.V.) 1% solution were prepared. Approximately half of each solution was used to prime a commercially available CRI pump with attached subpalpebral lavage system (CRI/SPL unit) with the remaining solution stored in the commercial glass vial. Three CRI/SPL units and their three corresponding vials were stored at one of three temperatures: 23 °C, 33 °C, and 40 °C. The CRI pumps ran for 7 days, and the vials were st...
Does intraoperative low arterial partial pressure of oxygen increase the risk of surgical site infection following emergency exploratory laparotomy in horses? Decreased tissue oxygenation is a critical factor in the development of wound infection as neutrophil mediated oxidative killing is an essential mechanism against surgical pathogens. The objective of this prospective case series was to assess the impact of intraoperative arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2) on surgical site infection (SSI) in horses undergoing emergency exploratory laparotomy for acute gastrointestinal disease. The anaesthetic and antibiotic protocol was standardised. Demographic data, surgical potential risk factors and PaO2, obtained 1h after induction of anaesthesia w...
Extended-spectrum β-lactamase, carbapenemase and AmpC producing Enterobacteriaceae in companion animals. Organisms in the family Enterobactericeae including, Escherichia coli, commonly cause community and hospital-associated infections in both humans and companion animals. The increasing prevalence of infections with organisms producing broad spectrum β-lactamses such as the ESBLs (particularly the CTX-M type), AmpC and carbapenemase enzymes are threatening the future of the β-lactam drugs. While a number of organisms within the Enterobacteriaceae producing these enzymes have been isolated from cats, dogs and horses, E. coli, including isolates indistinguishable from strains found in people, ha...
Accumulation of amikacin in synovial fluid after regional limb perfusion of amikacin sulfate alone and in combination with ticarcillin/clavulanate in horses. To determine the effect of regional limb perfusion (RLP) with amikacin sulfate alone and in combination with ticarcillin/clavulanate on synovial fluid concentration and antimicrobial activity of amikacin. Methods: Experimental study. Methods: RLP with amikacin alone (A; 2.5 g) or amikacin and ticarcillin/clavulanate (AT; 2.5 g amikacin, 7 g ticarcillin/clavulanate) was performed with a tourniquet placed at mid-antebrachium in standing, sedated horses. Perfusate blood was collected immediately after injection and again before tourniquet release. Blood from the jugular vein was collected before ...
Alarming proportions of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in wound samples from companion animals, Germany 2010-2012. Staphylococcus (S.) aureus is an important cause of wound infections in companion animals, and infections with methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) are of particular concern due to limited treatment options and their zoonotic potential. However, comparable epidemiological data on MRSA infections in dogs, cats and horses is scarce, also limiting the knowledge about possible links to MRSA isolates from human populations. To gain more knowledge about the occurrence and genotypic variation of MRSA among wound swabs of companion animal origin in Germany we performed a survey (2010-2012) including...
Removal of bacteria from stallion semen by colloid centrifugation. Bacteria (environmental contaminants and occasionally potential pathogens) are found in most stallion ejaculates and may negatively affect sperm quality during storage. Since the use of antibiotics can lead to the development of resistance, an alternative means of microbial control is desirable. The removal of bacteria from stallion semen using Single Layer Centrifugation through Androcoll-E was investigated. Known doses of cultured bacteria were added to freshly collected ejaculates (15mL aliquots) before processing by Single Layer Centrifugation. The resulting sperm pellets and controls (not...
CTX-M-15-D-ST648 Escherichia coli from companion animals and horses: another pandemic clone combining multiresistance and extraintestinal virulence? To discern the relevance of ST648 extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli as a putative new group of multiresistant and extraintestinal pathogenic strains in animals, its frequency, ESBL types, antimicrobial resistance patterns and virulence gene (VG) profiles should be determined and compared with ST131 strains from the same collection of strains. Methods: ESBL-producing E. coli isolates (n = 1152), consecutively sampled from predominantly dogs, cats and horses between 2008 and 2011, were assigned to a phylogenetic group by PCR. Partial multilocus sequence typing was ...
Dominant obligate anaerobes revealed in lower respiratory tract infection in horses by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Obligate anaerobes are important etiological agents in pneumonia or pleuropneumonia in horses, because they are isolated more commonly from ill horses that have died or been euthanized than from those that survive. We performed bacterial identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing for obligate anaerobes to establish effective antimicrobial therapy. We used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to identify 58 obligate anaerobes and compared the results with those from a phenotypic identification kit. The identification results of 16S rRNA gene sequencing were more reliable than those of the comm...
In vitro effectiveness of the antimicrobial peptide eCATH1 against antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens of horses. The equine antimicrobial peptide eCATH1 previously has been shown to have in vitro activity against antibiotic-susceptible reference strains of Rhodococcus equi and common respiratory bacterial pathogens of foals. Interestingly, eCATH1 was also found to be effective in the treatment of R. equi infection induced in mice. The aim of this study was to assess the in vitro activity of eCATH1 against equine isolates of Gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas spp.) and Gram-positive (R. equi, Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria resistant to multiple cla...
Postoperative Clostridium difficile infection with PCR ribotype 078 strain identified at necropsy in five Thoroughbred racehorses. Clostridium difficile is an important cause of acute enterocolitis in horses. We describe five cases of C difficile infection occurring postoperatively in Thoroughbred racehorses. Following diarrhoea or colic accompanied by a marked increase in packed cell volume (to ≥60 per cent) and leucopenia (≤4000 cells/μl) within two to four days after surgery in all five horses, four of them died or were euthanased because of colitis or severe diarrhoea. In these four horses, necrotising entero-typhlo-colitis was revealed by postmortem examination, and C difficile was recovered from the contents of...
Weissella confusa septicemia in a foal. Weissella confusa is a Gram-positive bacterium that has been identified in environmental and food samples from around the world. Rare cases of bacteremia in immunocompromised people have been reported. A 2-day-old foal was presented for weakness and suspected sepsis. Blood culture yielded pure growth of a Gram-positive coccobacillus, which was identified as W. confusa through sequencing of the 16S ribosomal DNA. Although the foal initially responded to antimicrobial therapy with ceftiofur and metronidazole, it later developed septic complications of the right tarsocrural joint and right digita...
Endometrial tissue and blood plasma concentration of ceftiofur and metabolites following intramuscular administration of ceftiofur crystalline free acid to mares. Systemic administration of ceftiofur crystalline free acid (CCFA) may be a potential treatment for infectious endometritis caused by Streptococcus equi ssp. zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) and other susceptible bacterial organisms in the mare. Objective: To determine if i.m. administration of CCFA at the label dose will exceed the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of S. zooepidemicus in the endometrium following single administration and multiple administration protocols. Methods: Experimental pharmacokinetic study. Methods: Three mares (Group 1) were administered a single i.m. dos...
Plasma and synovial fluid concentration of doxycycline following low-dose, low-frequency administration, and resultant inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-13 from interleukin-stimulated equine synoviocytes. To determine whether low-dose, low-frequency doxycycline administration is capable of achieving chondroprotective concentrations within synovial fluid (SF) while remaining below minimum inhibitory concentration 90 (MIC90 ) of most equine pathogens and would be an option in the management of osteoarthritis. Objective: To determine whether low-dose, low-frequency oral administration of doxycycline can attain in vivo SF concentrations capable of chondroprotective effects through reduction of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-13 activity, while remaining below MIC90 of most equine pathogens. Method...
Identification and characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) from Austrian companion animals and horses. The aim of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial resistance, resistance gene patterns and genetic relatedness of a collection of Austrian methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates from companion animals and horses. A total of 89 non-repetitive MRSA isolates collected during routine veterinary microbiological examinations from April 2004 to the end of 2012, and one isolate from 2013 were used for this study. The presence of mecA and other resistance genes was confirmed by PCR. Isolates were genotyped by spa typing, two multiple-locus variable-number tandem repeat ana...
MICs of 32 antimicrobial agents for Rhodococcus equi isolates of animal origin. The aim of this study was to determine the MICs of 32 antimicrobial agents for 200 isolates of Rhodococcus equi of animal origin by applying a recently described broth microdilution protocol, and to investigate isolates with distinctly elevated rifampicin MICs for the genetic basis of rifampicin resistance. Methods: The study included 200 R. equi isolates, including 160 isolates from horses and 40 isolates from other animal sources, from the USA and Europe. MIC testing of 32 antimicrobial agents or combinations thereof followed a recently published protocol. A novel PCR protocol for the joint ...
Purulent pericarditis and pneumonia caused by Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus. Purulent pericarditis is a life-threatening disease that usually manifests following bacteraemia or through spreading from an intrathoracic focus. Only a few cases of this disease have been reported with Lancefield group C streptococci as aetiological agents, and the primary focus in these infections remains unknown. We report a case of purulent pericarditis with septic and cardiogenic shock, caused by Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus (group C) in a 51-year-old patient. The pathogen was possibly contracted through contact with horses. Most probably, it caused initially pneumonia before ...
An unusual case of urinary retention and ulcerative cystitis in a horse, sequelae of pelvic abscessation, and adhesions. A 21-year-old Quarter horse gelding was presented with stranguria and incontinence of 10 days duration. Despite catheterization and antibiotic therapy, the horse was euthanized. Necropsy revealed posterior abdominal and pelvic abscessation with adhesions of the urinary bladder and severe ulcerative cystitis. . Un hongre Quarter horse âgé de 21 ans a été présenté avec de la strangurie et de l’incontinence depuis 10 jours. Malgré le cathétérisme et la thérapie antibiotique, le cheval a été euthanasié. La nécropsie a révélé un abcès pelvien avec des adhérences de la vessie ur...
Infectious folliculitis and dermatophytosis. Bacterial, dermatophilosis, and superficial ringworm infections are common skin diseases noted in equine dermatology. The ability to recognize and accurately diagnose the skin condition is key to selecting an appropriate and successful treatment regimen. Addressing underlying etiology, environmental management, and infection control play a crucial role in preventing relapse of clinical signs.
Comparison of tulathromycin, azithromycin and azithromycin-rifampin for the treatment of mild pneumonia associated with Rhodococcus equi. The objectives of the present study were to determine the relative efficacy of tulathromycin, azithromycin, or azithromycin with rifampin for the treatment of pulmonary abscesses on a farm with endemic infections caused by Rhodococcus equi. Foals with ultrasonographic evidence of pulmonary abscesses (abscess score 8.0-15 cm; n=120) were randomly allocated in four equal treatment groups: (1) tulathromycin intramuscularly; (2) azithromycin monotherapy, orally; (3) azithromycin with rifampin, orally; (4) saline intramuscularly as a placebo. Physical examination and thoracic ultrasonography were p...
The influence of perfusate volume on antimicrobial concentration in synovial fluid following intravenous regional limb perfusion in the standing horse. This study investigated the influence of perfusate volume on antimicrobial concentration in synovial fluid following intravenous regional limb perfusion (IVRLP) and assessed the efficacy of low volume IVRLP. The front limbs of 9 horses were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 volume groups: 10 mL (Group 1), 30 mL (Group 2), or 60 mL (Group 3). A tourniquet was applied distal to the carpus and the limbs were perfused with 500 mg genta-micin diluted to the assigned volume via a catheter placed in the lateral palmar digital vein at the level of the proximal sesamoid bones. Synovial fluid samples were col...
Identification of Actinomyces denticolens as a cause of a soft tissue abscess in a horse. A 6-year-old Arabian mare had a 4-week history of a subcutaneous mass (15 × 15 cm) at the base of the neck, cranial and distal to the prescapular lymph node on the right side. The mass was solid and painful on deep palpation. Ultrasonographic examination showed a soft-tissue abscess. Purulent aspirate was submitted for bacterial culture, which showed a moderate growth of an Actinomyces species. 16S rRNA gene sequencing was performed for definitive identification. Gene sequencing demonstrated close nucleotide homology with A. denticolens. Prolonged therapeutic management resulted in resolu...
Clinical and clinicopathological factors associated with survival in 44 horses with equine neorickettsiosis (Potomac horse Fever). The epidemiology of equine neorickettsiosis (EN) has been extensively studied but limited clinical and clinicopathological data are available concerning naturally infected horses. Objective: Factors predictive of survival will be identified in horses diagnosed with EN. Methods: Convenience sample of 44 horses with EN admitted to 2 referral institutions. Methods: A retrospective study was performed. A diagnosis of EN was based on the presence of positive blood or fecal PCR. Results: The most common clinical signs included diarrhea (66%), fever (50%), anorexia (45%), depression (39%), colic (39%...
Factors influencing antibiotic prescribing habits and use of sensitivity testing amongst veterinarians in Europe. The Heads of Medicines Agencies and the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe undertook a survey to gain a better insight into the decision-making process of veterinarians in Europe when deciding which antibiotics to prescribe. The survey was completed by 3004 practitioners from 25 European countries. Analysis was to the level of different types of practitioner (food producing (FP) animals, companion animals, equines) and country for Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden and the UK. Responses indicate no single information source is universally considered critical, though tra...
Actinobacillus equuli ssp. haemolyticus in a semi-occlusively treated horse bite wound in a 2-year-old girl. We report on the isolation of Actinobacillus equuli ssp. haemolyticus from wound smears of a 2-year-old girl who was admitted to the hospital due to partial amputation of the distal phalanx of her right middle finger caused by a horse bite. A. equuli typically causes diseases in horses and only very few reports describing human infections (mostly associated with wounds) are available in the literature. Interestingly, although the bacteria could be found in consecutive samples taken at different points in time, there were no signs of advancing infection or inflammation. Moreover, the fingertip ...