Topic:Disease control
Disease control in horses encompasses the strategies and measures implemented to prevent, manage, and eradicate infectious and non-infectious diseases within equine populations. This field involves the study of pathogen transmission, host-pathogen interactions, and the development of effective vaccination and biosecurity protocols. Disease control also includes monitoring and surveillance of equine health to identify outbreaks and implement timely interventions. Key aspects of disease control in horses involve understanding the epidemiology of equine diseases, improving diagnostic techniques, and enhancing treatment options. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore various methodologies, technologies, and practices aimed at controlling diseases in horses, with a focus on improving overall equine health and welfare.
An outbreak of contagious equine metritis in 1977 and its effect the following season. An outbreak of contagious equine metritis occurred in Newmarket in 1977. This survey records the effect on fertility of 20 of the stallions which were infected. Swabbing of mares since then has detected 37 carrier mares harbouring the organism, most frequently in the clitoral area. This swabbing programme reduced the incidence of new cases in 1978 to 3 mares and 1 stallion.
Resistance of animal helminths to anthelmintics. This chapter discusses the resistance of animal helminths to anthelmintics. Resistance is defined as a significant increase in the ability of individuals within a strain to tolerate doses of a compound, which would prove lethal to the majority of individuals in a normal population of the same species. The introduction of phenothiazine and the benzimidazole broad-spectrum anthelmintics, has unfortunately led to the selection of drug-resistant strains of important parasitic helminths. The emergence of an increasing number of resistant helminths is associated with the widespread use and misuse of...
Epidemiological observations on contagious equine metritis in Kentucky, 1978. Contagious equine metritis, introduced by importation of 2 comtaminated stallions from France, affected 54 Thoroughbred brood mares during the 1978 breeding season in Kentucky. The infection was diagnosed bacteriologically and by the use of a complement fixation test. Although lateral spread to stallions, and probably to a few mares, occurred through human agency in the breeding sheds of 2 stud farms, control measures instituted early in the epidemic confined the disease to brood mares bred by stallion on only these farms.
Eastern equine encephalomyelitis in upstate New York: studies of a 1976 epizootic by a modified serologic technique, hemagglutination reduction, for rapid detection of virus infections. An extensive outbreak of eastern equine encephalomyelitis (EEE) occurred in upstate New York during the summer of 1976, with 37 cases confirmed in horses by isolation of virus and/or by serologic examination. Other specimens collected in the affected area yielded 16 further isolates: 9 from 818 pools of 33,365 mosquitoes, 5 from tissues of 64 birds and 2 from 4 sentinel pheasants with serologic conversions. EEE antibodies were also detected in 81 of 499 wild birds tested. Our data implicate sparrows, cowbirds, and catbirds in the amplification of EEE virus and Culiseta melanura mosquitoes as v...
Contagious equine metritis: the present situation reviewed and a revised code of practice for its control. This report contains details of the code of practice for the control of contagious equine metritis (CEM) during the 1979 breeding season. It was prepared under the guidance of a scientific committee established by the Horserace Betting Levy Board under the chairmanship of Sir David Evans, FRS. The code is similar to the one introduced for the 1978 breeding season but takes into account the experience gained during the past 12 months. Following discussions with colleagues in Ireland it has been agreed that a similar code of practice will be introduced in the United Kingdom and Ireland so as to ...
An evaluation of the efficacy of oxfendazole against the common nematode parasites of the horse. In a controlled trial in naturally-infected young ponies, oxfendazole administered orally at dose-rates of 10 mg per kg and 50 mg per kg resulted in complete elimination of Trichostrongylus axei, Parascaris equorum, Oxyuris equi and adult Strongylus vulgaris. Also, all migrating Strongylus edentatus larvae recovered from the subperitoneal tissues of the flank were found to be dead. Minimum efficiencies of 99.8 per cent and 99.1 per cent were obtained against adult small strongyles (Trichonema spp) and 97.6 per cent and 100 per cent of developing small strongyle larvae at dose-rates of 10 mg pe...
Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis vaccine (strain TC-83): a field study. In 1971, more than 370 horses in south Texas were studied with respect to their clinical, virologic, and neutralizing antibody responses to vaccination with Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis (VEE) strain TC-83. This study confirms reported findings that the vaccine used in the 1971 epizootic in the lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas was safe and efficacious. Vaccinal virus viremia titers were generally below the postulated infection threshold of epizootic vectors. In general, reactions to the vaccine were minimal and transient, with no observed abortions or deaths attributable to use of the va...
Rates of infection in, and transmission of, African horse-sickness virus by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Very low infection rates (less than 3%) were obtained when Aedes aegypti mosquitoes ingested blood contained 5.8--6.5 log10 MLD50/0.02 ml African horse sickness virus (AHSV). When A. aegypti mosquitoes were inoculated intrathoracically with virus, however, high infection rates were achieved. Mosquitoes infected by inoculum failed to transmit virus to embryonated hens eggs by bite, and virus could not be detected in membrane or blood when inoculated mosquitoes were allowed to engorge on uninfected blood through a chick skin membrane. It was concluded that the mosquito A. aegypti is unlikely to ...
Equine grass sickness: serologic evidence of association with Clostridium perfringens type A enterotoxin. Clostridium perfringens type A enterotoxin seroneutralization was carried out on sera from 50 horses recovered from grass sickness and from 100 other horses with no record of having had the disease. Of the affected horses, 70% had seroneutralizating titers higher than 1:64, half of these being equal or higher than 1:128. More than 88% of the horses with no record of grass sickness had titers lower than 1:64. These data support the theory of association between C perfringens type A toxins and grass sickness.
Maintenance of foals with combined immunodeficiency: causes and control of secondary infections. Sixty-six cases of combined immunodeficiency (CID) in foals were studied to determine the most prevalent causes of infection and death. Lesions of the respiratory system were observed in 59 of the foals and were attributable to infection with equine adenovirus. Pneumocystis carinii, and bacteria. Significant lesions were also observed in liver, pancreas, intestines, heart, and kidneys. Maintenance of foals with CID for experimental purposes is directed at the prevention and control of these secondary infections. Adenovirus can be controlled by administration of horse plasma containing high tit...
Failure to propagate equine infectious anemia virus in mosquitoes and Culicoides variipennis. Laboratory-colonized mosquitoes, Culex tarsalis, aedes aegypti, Culiseta inornata, and Anopheles free-borni, and the biting gnat, Culicoides variipennis, were exposed to equine infectious anemia virus. Exposure to the virus was by intrathoracic inoculation for mosquitoes and by oral ingestion of an infective blood meal through a membrane for C variipennis. After various intervals, groups of 15 to 20 insects were homogenized and inoculated into susceptible ponies. Positive immunodiffusion test results were used as criterion for equine infectious anemia infection in ponies. Virus was not detecte...