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Topic:Disease Prevention
Disease prevention in horses encompasses strategies and practices aimed at minimizing the occurrence and spread of infectious and non-infectious diseases within equine populations. These practices include vaccination programs, biosecurity measures, and regular health monitoring. Vaccination helps to stimulate the horse's immune system to protect against specific pathogens, while biosecurity measures, such as quarantine and sanitation, reduce the risk of disease transmission. Regular health monitoring, including physical examinations and diagnostic testing, aids in early detection and management of potential health issues. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore various methods and their effectiveness in preventing diseases in horses, as well as the development and implementation of prevention programs in different equine settings.
Epidemiology of racetrack injuries in racehorses. This article describes the development of epidemiologic analyses of racetrack injury in racehorses. The risk or rate of fatal and nonfatal injury in racing and training around the world is examined. The focus is on the importance of global collaboration and the identification of modifiable risk factors. In particular, exercise-related risk factors for injury are evaluated and the potential impact of interventions discussed.
Biomechanical and mechanical investigations of the hoof-track interface in racing horses. The aim of this article is to review current knowledge of kinetic variables of the hoof-track interaction and track properties relevant to the objective of minimizing injuries to horses at racing tracks. In each phase of the stance--primary impact, secondary impact, support, and breakover, the hoof experiences different combinations of force and acceleration. The role of each combination, and of measured track properties, in causing catastrophic and chronic injuries to the limbs of racing horses is unknown. Limited data of this type have been provided in previous epidemiologic studies of risk ...
Evaluation of common vaginal tunic ligation during field castration in draught colts. The objective of this study was to determine if ligation of the common vaginal tunic could prevent or reduce the incidence of omental herniation and eventration in draught colts undergoing routine field castration. It was found that common vaginal tunic ligation, while not completely preventing omental herniation and evisceration, significantly reduced the incidence of these complications and should be considered in those males deemed at increased risk of significant post castration complications.
Pheromone trap for the eastern tent caterpillar moth. The discovery that the eastern tent caterpillar Malacosoma americanum (F.) causes mare reproductive loss syndrome (MRLS), and thus has the potential to continue to result in major economic losses to the equine industry of Kentucky, has resulted in an intensive effort to identify practical means to monitor and control this defoliator, including these experiments to optimize a sex pheromone trap for this pest. A pheromone-baited delta trap with a large opening, such as InterceptST Delta, was more effective than other tested traps. Orange delta traps caught more moths than other tested colors. ET...
The horse genome derby: racing from map to whole genome sequence. The map of the horse genome has undergone unprecedented expansion during the past six years. Beginning from a modest collection of approximately 300 mapped markers scattered on the 31 pairs of autosomes and the X chromosome in 2001, today the horse genome is among the best-mapped in domestic animals. Presently, high-resolution linearly ordered gene maps are available for all autosomes as well as the X and the Y chromosome. The approximately 4350 mapped markers distributed over the approximately 2.68 Gbp long equine genome provide on average 1 marker every 620 kb. Among the most remarkable deve...
Factors associated with vesicular stomatitis in animals in the western United States. To identify factors associated with development of vesicular stomatitis (VS). Methods: Case-control study. Methods: 138 livestock premises and 118 horses suspected of having VS in Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado. Methods: Premises with >or= 1 animal with clinical signs and laboratory confirmation of infection were classified as case premises. Premises where laboratory confirmation results were negative were control premises. Among equine premises, case and control horses were selected on the basis of premises status. A survey was conducted to identify factors associated with VS for premises an...
A West Nile virus (WNV) recombinant canarypox virus vaccine elicits WNV-specific neutralizing antibodies and cell-mediated immune responses in the horse. Successful vaccination against West Nile virus (WNV) requires induction of both neutralizing antibodies and cell-mediated immune responses. In this study, we have assessed the ability of a recombinant ALVAC-WNV vaccine (RECOMBITEK WNV) to elicit neutralizing antibodies and virus-specific cell-mediated immune responses in horses. In addition, we examined whether prior exposure to ALVAC-WNV vaccine would inhibit B and cell-mediated immune responses against the transgene product upon subsequent booster immunizations with the same vaccine. The results demonstrated that the recombinant ALVAC-WNV va...
Evaluation of a new premedication protocol for administration of equine rabies immunoglobulin in patients with hypersensitivity. The present study was undertaken to standardize skin testing and to develop a safe and effective premedication protocol for administration of ERIG in those with skin test positivity/hypersensitivity. Methods: A method of grading of skin testing was developed using injection histamine as a positive control. This was evaluated by using it on 517 subjects who had severe (WHO category III) exposure to rabies. A premedication protocol consisting of injections pheniramine, ranitidine, hydrocortisone and adrenaline was evaluated by using it on fifty one subjects who were skin test positive/hypersensi...
[Notifiable animal diseases diagnosed at the Institute of Veterinary Pathology of the University of Zurich between 1988 and 2004]. One of the essential tasks of veterinary pathology is the gross and microscopic examination of animals post mortem. Frequently requests are made for the cause of disease or death in the absence of a precise history or an otherwise specific assignment e.g. whether a notifiable disease is involved. The general examination is supplemented by a spectrum of additional examinations depending on the case whereas attempts are made to keep the costs within limits and to answer the client's request with justifiable effort. 36,365 necropsy cases and 9192 organs submitted between 1988 and 2004 were analys...
History and clinical features of atypical myopathy in horses in Belgium (2000-2005). The emergent nature of atypical myopathy or atypical myoglobinuria (AM) necessitates precise description of its clinical and epidemiologic features. Objective: To define key features of AM to help practitioners recognize the disease and to advise owners to take preventive measures. Methods: Belgian cases of AM confirmed by histology (CC horses; n = 57) from autumn 2000 to spring 2005 were included in the study. Co-grazing horses (Co-G horses; n = 77) that remained free of any abnormal clinical signs constituted a control group. Methods: History, environmental characteristics, clinical signs, a...
Veterinary management of horse transport. Enormous numbers of horses are transported locally, nationally and internationally every year. National legislation and international guidelines set standards for the health and welfare of animals during transport. As a consequence, equine clinicians have major responsibilities in safeguarding the horse industry against the spread of disease and in being aware of the problems inherent in horse transport. The authors explore road, sea and air transport and their effect on horses. Various types of road transport are available and there are various sources of impact on horses. These include loadi...
Bite and kick injuries in horses: prevalence, risk factors and prevention. Studies on the prevalence and predisposing factors of bite and kick injuries in horses have not been reported in a population-based data sample. Objective: To investigate the prevalence of bite and kick injuries in horses and associated risk factors in a representative sample of horses in Switzerland. Methods: A questionnaire on the incidence of disease and injury, which included the frequency of bite and kick injuries and their association with breed, housing, use and feeding regime, was sent to 2559 horse owners randomly selected throughout Switzerland. Results: The data of 2912 horses with ...
Epiphyseal cartilage canal blood supply to the tarsus of foals and relationship to osteochondrosis. Pathological changes in the blood supply to growth cartilage have been implicated in the pathogenesis of osteochondrosis (OC) in horses, but have not been reported using vascular perfusion techniques. Objective: To describe the developmental pattern of cartilage canal vessels in the distal tibial epiphysis and talar growth cartilage of foals. Methods: Nine foals bred from parents with OC were sacrificed between the ages of 0 and 7 weeks to undergo a barium perfusion procedure. The distal end of the tibia and the entire talus were cleared in methyl salicylate and perfused vessels studied in the...
Equine travellers to the Olympic Games in Hong Kong 2008: a review of worldwide challenges to equine health, with particular reference to vector-borne diseases. The past 10-20 years have seen exponential growth in the volume of trade in horses and equine germplasm; and the extent of global horse movements has increased significantly in the last 4 years. In preparing for the transport of elite Olympic horses to Hong Kong in 2008, it will be very important to be as fully informed as possible of the disease situation in both the exporting and importing country, import and re-entry requirements, as well as having a vaccination strategy to protect against particular diseases. In this context the review describes the equine vector-borne disease situation in...
Safety of an attenuated West Nile virus vaccine, live Flavivirus chimera in horses. West Nile virus (WNV) infection is endemic and able to cause disease in naive hosts. It is necessary therefore to evaluate the safety of new vaccines. Objective: To establish: 1) the safety of a modified live Flavivirus/West Nile virus (WN-FV) chimera by administration of an overdose and testing for shed of vaccine virus and spread to uninoculated sentinel horses; 2) that this vaccine did not become pathogenic once passaged in horses; and 3) vaccine safety under field conditions. Methods: There were 3 protocols: 1) In the overdose/shed and spread study, horses were vaccinated with a 100x immun...
Efficacy, duration, and onset of immunogenicity of a West Nile virus vaccine, live Flavivirus chimera, in horses with a clinical disease challenge model. West Nile virus (WNF) is a Flavivirus responsible for a life-threatening neurological disease in man and horses. Development of improved vaccines against Flavivirus infections is therefore important. Objective: To establish that a single immunogenicity dose of live Flavivirus chimera (WN-FV) vaccine protects horses from the disease and it induces a protective immune response, and to determine the duration of the protective immunity. Methods: Clinical signs were compared between vaccinated (VACC) and control (CTRL) horses after an intrathecal WNV challenge given at 10 or 28 days, or 12 months p...
Alternative vaccination against equine botulism (BoNT/C). In Europe the incidence of botulism in horses has increased in the last decade due to the growing popularity of haylage feeding. Recombinant vaccines are safer and less expensive to produce and are generally better tolerated than toxoids. Objective: To investigate whether the recombinant C-terminal half of the heavy chain of the botulinum neurotoxin C (Hc BoNT/C) in combination with an immunstimulatory adjuvant is an appropriate vaccine candidate for horses by testing its efficacy to induce neutralising antibodies and by comparing its immunogenic properties and adverse reactions to a commercia...
Factors associated with West Nile virus disease fatalities in horses. In 2003, the occurrence and location of horses with clinical signs of West Nile virus infection were identified in the southern portion of Saskatchewan with the help of veterinarians, owners, and the regional laboratory. A total of 133 clinical cases were reported between July 30 and September 19, 2003; however, postseason surveillance suggests that the number of cases was underestimated. The case fatality rate was 43.8% (95% CI 35.2, 52.4). Factors associated with fatality in clinical cases included sex, week of onset of clinical signs, and coat color. Reported clinical cases clustered within...
Epidemiologic characteristics of catastrophic musculoskeletal injuries in Thoroughbred racehorses. To determine characteristics, incidence rate, and possible associations with selected demographic characteristics of catastrophic musculoskeletal injuries (CMIs) in Thoroughbred racehorses. Methods: 76 Thoroughbreds with CMIs. Methods: Incidence rates of CMIs during racing or training were calculated with number of CMIs as the numerator and overall numbers of races or training events during 2004 and 2005 as the denominators. Exact 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Associations between incidence and dichotomous exposure factors, nominal factors, and ordinal factors were determined. Only...
Efficacy of azithromycin in preventing pulmonary abscesses in foals. The prophylactic application of azithromycin to prevent pulmonary abscesses in foals was evaluated on a stud with endemic Rhodococcus equi pneumonia. Forty-five foals served as untreated controls in two groups. Twenty-five foals were given azithromycin (10mg/kg) orally once daily for 4 weeks. The foals were examined once a week from birth to the age of 5 months. If clinical signs or leucocytosis were noted and pulmonary sonographic findings (diameter >10 mm) were observed, the diagnosis of abscessing pneumonia was made. The prevalence of pulmonary abscesses was similar in the control groups (3...
Safety and immunogenicity of a live-attenuated auxotrophic candidate vaccine against the intracellular pathogen Rhodococcus equi. Rhodococcus equi causes serious pneumonia in neonatal foals and is an opportunistic pathogen of people with compromised cellular immunity. No effective vaccine against R. equi disease in foals is available. We tested the safety and immunogenicity of a live, fully attenuated riboflavin auxotrophic candidate vaccine strain of R. equi (R. equi rib-). We demonstrated that R. equi rib- is immunogenic and capable of inducing IFN-gamma responses in immunocompetent BALB/c mice, yet it is safe even in an immunocompromised SCID mouse infection model. Moreover, it protects immunocompetent mice against vi...
Antimicrobial susceptibility of Escherichia coli from swine, horses, dogs and cats as determined in the BfT-GermVet monitoring program 2004-2006. A total of 417 isolates of Escherichia coli collected from five animal species/organ system combinations from swine [urinary/genital tract (UGT) incl. mastitis metritis agalactia syndrome], horses [genital tract (GT)] and dogs/cats [respiratory tract (RT), UGT and gastrointestinal tract (GIT)] were analysed quantitatively for their susceptibility against different antimicrobial agents by determination of minimum inhibitory concentrations. Regardless of which animal species the strains originated from, resistance appeared most frequently against sulfamethoxazole (18-59%), tetracycline (14-54 %)...
