The topic of Public Health and horses encompasses the study of interactions between equine populations and human health systems. It involves examining the transmission of zoonotic diseases, which are diseases that can be transferred between animals and humans, as well as the role of horses in the epidemiology of such diseases. This field also considers the impact of equine-related activities on public health, including injuries and environmental effects. Research in this area often explores preventive measures, management strategies, and policies to mitigate health risks associated with horses. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that investigate the intersection of equine and public health, focusing on disease transmission, risk assessment, and health management strategies.
Barendsz AW.The enzyme butyrylcholinesterase from horse serum catalyses the hydrolysis of certain esters. The orange-red 2,6-dichloroindophenyl acetate will be converted by the enzyme into a deep blue alcohol. The colour transformation does not occur when the enzyme is inactivated. By making use of this biochemical reaction a cheap and simple, but very sensitive and specific detection tube could bedeveloped. The tube comprises a breakable ampoule with an aqueous buffer solution, a freeze-dried preparation of the chromogenic ester with a filler promoting its dissolution, a freeze-dried preparation of butyr...
Sherman J, Mitchell WR, Martin SW, Thorsen J, Ingram DG.The outbreaks of upper respiratory tract infections in horses at Standardbred racetracks were investigated over a three year period. The most serious epidemics of respiratory disease occurred in the winter and spring seasons. Both influenza viruses and equine herpesvirus 1 were shown to be present in the horse population. The herpesvirus was associated with respiratory disease particularly in the winter but the equine influenza viruses apparently were responsible for the major epidemics of respiratory disease at these tracks. Younger horses, two or three years of age, were particularly suscept...
Artsob H, Wright R, Shipp L, Spence L, Th'ng C.A study was undertaken in 1975 to determine California encephalitis virus activity in southern Ontario. Three thousand and sixty-one mosquitoes, primarily Aedes species, were divided into 104 pools and inoculated into suckling mice. Isolates of snowshoe hare virus were obtained from one pool each of Aedes fitchii and A. triseriatus mosquitoes collected in the Guelph area. Serological testing of horse sera revealed extensive virus activity in southern Ontario and indicated that horses may serve as excellent monitors for California encephalitis virus.
Srihongse S, Grayson MA, Morris CD, Deibel R, Duncan CS.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...
Smith AW, Vedros NA, Akers TG, Gilmartin WG.In a 5-year study (1972-1977) of microbial agents isolated from both clinically normal and diseased marine mammals, it was shown that certain disease agents are widespread in a diversity of ocean populations and that some are also transmissible to a number of terrestrial mammal species. Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona has been isolated repeatedly from 2 species of pinnipeds (Zalophus californianus califonianus and Callorhinus ursinus). Some of the more important bacterial pathogens for land mammals that were isolated from wild marine mammals are Pseudomonas mallei, Clostridium chauvoei, ...
Powell DG, David JS, Frank CJ.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 ...
Baker EF, Sasso DR, Maness K, Prichard WD, Parker RL.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...
Riemann HP, Kaneko JJ, Haghighi S, Behymer DE, Franti CE, Ruppanner R.Hospitalized animals and stray dogs were serologically tested for antibodies against Toxoplasma gondii. In addition, the data were examined for the possibility of toxoplasmosis infection being associated with the clinical diagnosis and with the discharge status (alive vs. dead). Among 1056 hospitalized animals, 17 (20%) of 86 cats, 112 (14%) of 804 dogs, 34 (26%) of 133 horses and 6 (18%) of 33 cattle had serological evidence of infection with T. gondii. Only 22 (6%) of 342 young (median age = one year) stray dogs were seropositive. The difference in antibody prevalence between hospitalized an...
Braverman Y, Boorman J.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 ...
Shen DT, Gorham JR, Jones RH, Crawford TB.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...
Düe M.A survey is given about the situation of "doping" of horses. A definition of the term "doping" is delivered which is up to date and considers the matters of animal welfare. Existing regulations will be discussed in view of recent results of research. Different regulations for horses as well as humans in sports will be compared. Also different attempts of solutions for the regulatory body will be presented, which may change the regulatory significance. Finally a preview about actual questions related to doping is given.
Novotny EN, Hässig M, Palme R, Fürst AE, Weishaupt MA.The Zurich's Sechseläuten is a traditional festival of the Zurich guilds, in which around 500 horses take part. After a parade through the old town of Zurich, the riders gather at a big square to canter around a burning woodpile topped with an exploding effigy (the «Böögg»). The level of stress experienced by the horses partaking in this event is subjected to increasing scrutiny. The aim of this study was to evaluate the stress load of the horses participating in the Sechseläuten procession more objectively by measuring heart rate and faecal cortisol metabolites. Twenty-three horse-rider...
Miyamoto C, Takashima I, Karaiwa H, Sugiura T, Kamada M, Hashimoto N.To investigate the overall prevalence of chlamydial infections in light (i.e. non-draught) horses in Japan, 599 sera obtained from 12 localities in 1991 were tested for complement fixation antibodies. The mean antibody positive rates of the all sera were 15.2% (91/599) and the regional positive rates were higher in Honshu (19.1%, 48/251) and Kyushu (20.0%, 20/100) than in Hokkaido (9.3%, 23/248). In Honshu, the highest rate (56.0%, 28/50) was observed in Utsunomiya. Analysis of the positive rate in different age groups showed that the 2-5 years age-group had the highest prevalence of chlamydia...
Bauer B, Blank J, Heile C, Schein E, Clausen PH.A fence of black mosquito netting of 100 cm height, pre-treated with 80 mg/m2 of deltamethrin and UV-protected, was used to shelter horses from nuisance and biting insects on pasture in northern Brandenburg. The netting material was attached to the surrounding poles of the existing fences at a height of 15 cm above ground. Three trial groups were selected grazing in spatially separated areas with comparable densities of insect populations. One paddock was completely fenced apart from a wall of 170 cm height and 70 m length. The second pasture had only partial protection with 126 m (13.4%) of f...
Heinke ML, Sabo C.This article examines gender shifts in equine veterinary practice. A significant gender compensation gap continues across the spectrum of professions, including veterinary medicine. Many styles of practice serve the disparate and sometimes conflicting goals of financial well-being, patient care, and physical family presence.