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Topic:Infection
Infections in horses encompass a range of diseases caused by various pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. These infections can affect different systems within the horse, such as the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and integumentary systems, leading to a variety of clinical signs depending on the pathogen and the severity of the infection. Common infectious diseases in horses include equine influenza, strangles, and equine herpesvirus. Diagnosis often involves clinical examination, laboratory testing, and sometimes imaging, to identify the causative agent and assess the extent of the disease. Treatment strategies may include antimicrobial therapy, supportive care, and preventive measures such as vaccination and biosecurity practices. This page aggregates peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the pathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of infectious diseases in equine populations.
Control of Babesia equi parasitemia. Infection of horses with the hemoprotozoan Babesia equi has been reported in southern Florida, US Virgin Islands, part of Asia, Russia, India, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Australia, South America, Central America, Mexico, Philippine Islands and some Caribbean islands. The restrictions placed on the international movement of infected horses has refocused attention on potential methods to control or eliminate infection. Don Knowles here discusses the primary chemotherapeutic compounds that have been used; the current knowledge concerning immune responses that potentially contribute to contr...
Open peritoneal drainage in horses with experimentally induced peritonitis. Peritonitis was induced in 12 horses by median celiotomy and 1 hour of small intestinal ischemia. Six horses had primary closure of the incision, whereas six horses had a plastic mesh sutured to the ventral abdominal wall leaving the abdomen open for ventral drainage. The mesh was removed after 5 days and the abdominal wall was closed by apposition of the linea alba and subcutaneous tissues and approximation ef the skin edges. Peritoneal fluid was collected and analyzed for nucleated cell count and total protein concentration on days 0 and 5. Serum biochemical profiles, serum electrolyte conce...
Infection of the intertubercular bursa in horses: four cases (1978-1991). To determine the clinical outcome of horses treated for infection of the intertubuercular bursa (infectious bicipital bursitis). Methods: Retrospective analysis of case records. Methods: Four horses referred for treatment of infectious bicipital bursitis. Methods: Medical records of horses that were severely lame on admission were reviewed. Results: In 3 horses, palpation over the bicipital bursa as well as flexion and extension of the scapulohumeral joint were resented. Ultrasonography performed in 1 horse revealed that the bicipital bursa was large and that excessive amounts of fluid contain...
Detection of bacteria in equine synovial fluid by use of the polymerase chain reaction. Equine synovial fluid aliquots were inoculated with Salmonella enteritidis, Escherichia coli, Actinobacillus equuli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Streptococcus zooepidemicus to obtain approximate concentrations of 1000, 100, 10, and 1 colony forming U/mL. Synovial fluid aliquots were also inoculated with an unquantitated inoculum of Bacteroides fragilis and Clostridium perfringens. Inoculated synovial fluid was incubated in trypticase-soy broth or Columbia broth for approximately 12 hours. Then aliquots were removed for DNA extraction and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis for detection of...
Influence of chronic degenerative endometritis (endometrosis) on placental development in the mare. Placentation between 80 and 220 days of gestation was studied by measurement of fetal dimensions and gross, light and transmission and scanning electron microscopic examinations of the allantochorion and endometrium from 4 fertile mares with no, or very mild, endometrial histopathology and 6 subfertile Thoroughbred mares suffering varying degrees of age-related chronic degenerative endometritis (endometrosis). Spontaneously occurring twin gestation was observed in 3 animals. Several of the subfertile mares had endometrial cysts which showed 2 distinct features during pregnancy: those located n...
Seasonal variation in the vector competence of Culex tarsalis (Diptera:Culicidae) from the Coachella Valley of California for western equine encephalomyelitis and St. Louis encephalitis viruses. The vector competence of Culex tarsalis Coquillett from the Coachella Valley of California for western equine encephalomyelitis (WEE) and St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) viruses was monitored monthly from February to November 1993. The concentration of WEE virus required to infect 50% of the females increased during summer coincidentally with ambient temperature and was highest during July. Transmission rates of WEE virus were high during March, low during May-June, and high again during July-September. Females expressed both mesenteronal escape and salivary gland barriers limiting WEE virus diss...
Prognosis for return to racing after recovery from infectious pleuropneumonia in thoroughbred racehorses: 70 cases (1984-1989). To determine the percentage of Thoroughbred racehorses that would be capable of racing performance after recovery from infectious pleuropneumonia. Methods: Retrospective case series. Methods: 70 Thoroughbred horses that had recovered from pleuropneumonia. Only horses 5 years old known to be in race training at the time of illness were included in the study. Results: Forty-three of the 70 (61%) horses raced after recovery, and 24 of the 43 (56%) won at least 1 race. Horses that required placement of an indwelling thoracic drain apparently did not have a worse prognosis than did horses that did...
Adverse drug reactions: report of the Australian Veterinary Association Adverse Drug Reaction Subcommittee, 1994. Seventy-seven reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) were received by the Adverse Drug Reaction Subcommittee (ADRSc) of the Australian Veterinary Association from April 1993 to December 1994 inclusive. The number of reports received/number of animals involved per species were: dogs (32/44), cats (18/31), horses (17/48), and cattle (10/21). Of these, 49 (64%) were classified as definite ADRs and 9 (12%) as probable ADRs. In 11 (14%) reports an ADR could not be substantiated or there was insufficient information available to make a decision. Eight reports were not classified because ...
Ctenocephalides felis flea infestation in horses. The horses were in two stables: in the first stable they were kept together with sheep and in the second stable they were kept together with goats. All horses in both stables were diagnosed as being infested with the cat flea Ctenocephalides felis felis. Foals were severely infested, whereas adult horses were only moderately infested.
Proliferative enteropathy in a foal caused by Lawsonia intracellularis-like bacterium. No abstract available
A comparison of equid herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) vascular lesions in the early versus late pregnant equine uterus. Four Welsh Mountain pony mares at 3 months of gestation and one mare at 5 months were inoculated intranasally with equid herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1: Ab4 isolate) at doses of 10(5) to 10(6.6) TCID50. All five mares became infected, but no cases of paresis or abortion occurred. On days 8, 9, 11, 12 (3-month-pregnant mares) and 13 (5-month-pregnant mare) after infection, a detailed examination of the pregnant uterus was made. Small numbers of vascular lesions with EHV-1 antigen expression in endothelial cells were present in the uteri of the early gestational mares; thrombi were rare and foci of thromb...
Evaluation of plasma alpha-2-macroglobulin and interactions with tumour necrosis factor-alpha in horses with endotoxemic signs. The electrophoretic position and behavior of the native and activated forms of equine plasma alpha-2-macroglobulin (alpha 2M) were characterized and compared to human alpha 2M by nondenaturing polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis (PAGE). Plasma alpha 2M was also compared between 6 normal horses and 6 horses with clinical signs of colic and endotoxemia due to volvulus or enteritis. Native and activated forms of alpha 2M were quantified by PAGE and densitometry. Binding of radio-labeled recombinant human tumour necrosis factor-alpha (125I-rhTNF-alpha) to native and activated forms of equine alpha ...
Methods for the Detection of Trichinellosis in Horses. Twelve horses were infected with various doses of Trichinella spiralis and then tested for infection using direct (artificial digestion) and indirect (enzyme immunoassay) methods. Horses became infected in a dose-dependent manner. Larvae accumulated preferentially in the tongue, followed by the masseter, neck, supraspinatus, trapezius, and diaphragm. At lower infection levels, the tongue harbored several times more parasites than were found in other tissues. The sensitivity of artificial digestion methods for detecting infections was directly related to sample size. One-gram samples were not r...
Histopathological and immunofluorescent studies on transplacental infection in experimentally induced abortion by equine arteritis virus. Five pregnant mares, at between 6 and 8 months gestation, were experimentally infected with the Bucyrus strain of equine arteritis virus (EAV). Of the five mares, four aborted and one died. The pathogenesis of the abortions was studied, using histopathologic techniques, tissue immunofluorescence and virus isolation. Common microscopic lesions in the maternal reproductive organs indicated myometritis with a degeneration of the myocytes and an infiltration of the mononuclear cells. Epithelial cells of the endometrial gland showed sporadic degeneration. Lesions in the fetal tissue included an atr...
Blastogenic response of lymphocytes from foals infected with Rhodococcus equi. The blastogenic response of lymphocytes from 16 newborn foals naturally infected with Rhodococcus equi was investigated, in order to evaluate the relationship between R. equi infection and depressed host response. Naturally infected foals showed evidence of R. equi infection at 5-6 weeks of age, as determined by clinical, haematological, bacteriological and serological methods. The blastogenic response of lymphocytes against phytohaemagglutinin was significantly depressed (stimulation index < 1.80; P < 0.01, P < 0.05) in R. equi-infected foals at 5-6 weeks of age compared with those o...
Immunohistochemical diagnosis of eastern equine encephalomyelitis. An immunohistochemical (IHC) assay was developed for the detection of eastern equine encephalomyelitis (EEE) virus antigen in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues. All cases of EEE diagnosed at the Michigan State University Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory from 1991 through 1994 were evaluated. The diagnosis was based on histopathologic examination of the brain and confirmatory virus, isolation. Sections of cerebrum from 26 equids and 5 birds were assessed by IHC. Histologically normal brain tissues from 2 horses and 1 pheasant and brain tissues from 2 cases of equine neurologic diseas...
Detection of eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus RNA in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues using DNA in situ hybridization. Eastern equine encephalomyelitis (F.EE) virus was detected in infected formalin-fixed horse and emu tissues and in infected chicken embryo fibroblasts. Results of in situ hybridization using a digoxigenin-labeled 40-base DNA probe complementary to a conserved region of the EEE virus RNA compared favorably with results of both virus isolation and serum neutralization tests. This technique may be useful for diagnosis of EEE virus infection in various animal species, especially when fresh tissues are not available for analysis, and also will provide a means for studying the involvement of alphavi...
Equine neonatal septicaemia: 24 cases. Equine neonatal septicaemia was confirmed in 24 foals hospitalised at the Rural Veterinary Centre between 1989 and 1992 with suspected septicaemia. Septicaemia was confirmed by culture of bacteria from blood of live foals and tissues obtained at necropsy of foals that died or were euthanased. Pathogenic bacteria isolated were predominantly Enterobacteriaceae (including Escherichia coli and Salmonella serovars) and Actinobacillus equuli. Clinical manifestations of septicaemia included signs of depression, dehydration, abnormalities in body temperature and manifestations of localised infection i...
Surgical treatment for colic in the foal (67 cases): 1980-1992. Sixty-seven foals age 2 years following surgery, compared to 69% of foals with nonstrangulating lesions. The age of foals on admission had a significant effect on survival. Only 10% of foals less than 14 days of age survived, compared to 45.8% of foals between age 15 and 150 days.
Comparison of the reappearance of strongyle eggs on foals, yearlings and adult horses after treatment with ivermectin or pyrantel. The reappearance of strongyle eggs in faeces after treatment with ivermectin or pyrantel embonate was investigated in 22 foals, 36 yearlings, and 45 adult horses on five Dutch horse farms. The results confirmed earlier studies which showed an egg reappearance period of 9 and 6 weeks after ivermectin and pyrantel treatment, respectively. There were no differences between the egg reappearance periods of foals, yearlings, and adult horses. The mean egg counts of the yearlings were, however, consistently higher than the mean egg counts of the adult horses and foals in both ivermectin- and pyrantel...
Anomalous inheritance of a paternally derived trophoblast antigen. Recurrent spontaneous abortion occurs in 1 in 500 random matings and usually results in abortion of all pregnancies. If absence of antibody to a paternally derived antigen caused abortion, the woman would be expected to make antibody to the other paternal antigen and abort only half her pregnancies. Methods: Microvesicles were prepared from equine placentae. Acid-eluted IgG antibody was eluted from the polymorphic R80K antigen and used to type the residual R80K antigen on vesicles or on peripheral blood leucocytes. Results: In several equine sibships all the half-sibs had the same paternal R80...
Cross-sectional evaluation of environmental, host, and management factors associated with risk of seropositivity to Ehrlichia risticii in horses of New York state. To locate counties within New York state with a high seroprevalence among the equine population, to determine host, management, and environmental factors that were associated with seropositivity to Ehrlichia risticii, and to determine evidence for arthropod- or helminth-mediated transmission of E risticii to horses. Methods: Cross-sectional study. Methods: A random sample of 3,000 of the 39,000 equine operations in New York state was selected, and 2,587 horses from 511 operations were tested. Methods: Blood samples were collected from horses and tested for seropositivity, using the indirect fl...
A morphometric study of bone marrow megakaryocytes in foals infected with equine infectious anemia virus. Morphometric evaluation of bone marrow core biopsies was used to determine megakaryocyte (MK) numbers and MK size in nine foals with equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV)-induced thrombocytopenia. Both immunocompetent normal foals and foals with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) were used. Platelet counts were made three times weekly following viral infection. Bone marrow core biopsies were taken from the ilium of each foal prior to experimental infection, immediately after the onset of thrombocytopenia, and at necropsy. All foals developed thrombocytopenia by 23 days postinfection. The ...
Alterations in the equine herpesvirus type-1 (EHV-1) strain RacH during attenuation. The equine herpesvirus type-1 modified live-vaccine strain RacH (256th passage on porcine embryonic kidney cells) was investigated by restriction-enzyme analysis and compared to representative plaque isolates of the 12th passage (RacL11, RacL22) and 185th passage (RacM24, RacM36). The restriction patterns of all Rac plaque isolates differed compared with reference strain Ab4. The left UL terminus was shortened by 0.1 kbp and a missing BamHI site led to the fusion of the f and t fragments. In some Rac derivatives, losses of restriction sites without deletions were observed: 1. One BamHI site lo...
Fine specificity of equine infectious anaemia virus gp90-specific antibodies associated with protective and enhancing immune responses in experimentally infected and immunized ponies. Equine infectious anaemia virus (EIAV) provides a model for examining the natural immunological control of a persistent lentivirus infection and for evaluating the efficacy of various vaccine strategies. As an initial characterization of antibody responses associated with protective or enhancing immune responses elicited by experimental infections or vaccinations, we have utilized synthetic peptide ELISA to characterize the fine specificity of antibodies to linear determinants of the EIAV surface glycoprotein, gp90. The data indicated that serum antibodies associated with protective or enhanci...
Platelet-activating factor and not thromboxane A2 is an important mediator of endotoxin-induced platelet aggregation in equine heparinised whole blood in vitro. Endotoxin has previously been shown to induce platelet aggregation in equine heparinised whole blood. This study aimed to determine whether platelet-activating factor or products of cyclo-oxygenase metabolism (thromboxane A2 or prostaglandins) were important in mediating the response of platelets to endotoxin. The effects of the following drugs on endotoxin-induced aggregation were investigated: aspirin, flunixin meglumine and carprofen (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs); CV-3988 and WEB2086 (platelet-activating factor receptor antagonists); quinacrine (phospholipase A2 inhibitor). The ef...
