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.
Alvarado TD, Mariezcurrena Berasain MD, Salem AZM, Pinzón Martínez DL.Functional biocompounds beneficial for animals and humans are in Mexican folk herbs. Cuphea and Eryngium species presented antimicrobial potential. Natural antibiotic uses by ethnoveterinary research with medicinal plants in equine infection or digestive diseases need more scientific evidence. Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis are etiological agents in horses responsible for stable infections, abortions, fetal or perinatal deaths, and resistant intrahospital infections. The main objective of the present research was to evaluate the potential of a...
Sauermann CW, Leathwick DM, Lieffering M, Nielsen MK.Climate change is likely to influence livestock production by increasing the prevalence of diseases, including parasites. The traditional practice of controlling nematodes in livestock by the application of anthelmintics is, however, increasingly compromised by the development of resistance to these drugs in parasite populations. This study used a previously developed simulation model of the entire equine cyathostomin lifecycle to investigate the effect a changing climate would have on the development of anthelmintic resistance. Climate data from six General Circulation Models based on four di...
Díaz-Sánchez AA, Chilton NB, Roblejo-Arias L, Fonseca-Rodríguez O, Marrero-Perera R, Diyes CP, Yunik MEM, Lobo-Rivero E, Corona-González B.Spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsiae are obligatory intracellular bacteria that cause disease in humans and other animals. Ixodid ticks are the principal vectors of SFG rickettsiae. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence and species identity of SFG rickettsiae in ticks and horses from urban and rural areas of western Cuba using PCR assays. Tick samples, collected from 79 horses, consisted of 14 Amblyomma mixtum adults, 111 Dermacentor nitens adults and 19 pools of D. nitens nymphs (2-5 individuals/pool). The PCR results revealed the presence of Rickettsia spp. in 64% of the A. mi...
Ryan KD, Brodine J, Pothast J, McGoldrick A.Horseracing is among the most popular and increasingly lucrative industry sports in the nation. The average jockey must control a thoroughbred horse 10 times their weight that may act unpredictably whether at rest or full gallop resulting in falls, kicks, or even biting injuries. Despite the risks, jockeys do not have access to the same quality of medical care that is standard in similarly profitable sports organizations. Beyond the mental and physical demands of training and performance endured by any professional athlete, jockeys are confronted with health challenges unique to their sport. I...
Taylor K, Thomas S, Mendez D, Chicken C, Carrick J, Heller J, Durrheim D.Employees in the equine industry are at occupational risk of zoonoses such as Hendra virus and equine chlamydiosis through exposure to infected materials. This study aimed to gain a deeper understanding of the views and experiences of employees, and the key drivers of infection control and personal biosecurity (PB) practices in the Thoroughbred breeding industry. Methods: An exploratory qualitative study was conducted in 2018 in New South Wales, Australia using interviews (9) and small group discussions (7). The 29 participants included veterinarians, veterinary nurses, foaling staff, stud man...
Selim A, Khater H.Equine piroplasmosis (EP) is caused by Theileria equi and/or Babesia caballi and has economic importance particularly in equines reared in poor management systems. This study is based on cELISA test to study the seroprevalence of EP among 370 horses and 150 donkeys in four Governorates north Egypt. Additionally, its risk factors were studied for the first time. The seroprevalence rates 36.5 %, 20 %, and 5.6 % for T. equi, B. caballi, and mixed infections, respectively. The highest antibody levels against T. equi were detected in Kafr ElSheikh (40 %) and Giza (40.1 %) Governorates, whereas thos...
Fenner K, Dashper K, Wilkins C, Serpell J, McLean A, Wilson B, McGreevy P.Over the last decade, equitation scientists have increasingly relied on online survey tools to gather information on horse training, management, behaviour and other equine-related subjects. With a detailed knowledge of their animals, horse owners and riders are ideally placed to contribute to research but are sometimes reluctant to engage with and devote time to surveys. The current article reveals, through consultation with stakeholder groups, the potential of a range of motivational items to boost horse-owner participation. A short, three-question inquiry was developed to rank respondents' (...
Vasco ACCM, Dubeux JCB, Wallau MO, Wickens CL, Warren LK.This study used an online survey to gather information on forage utilization and pasture management practices implemented on horse farms in Florida. We hypothesized that pastures were inadequately managed and underutilized, resulting in greater reliance on hay. Data from 80 complete responses were submitted to descriptive analysis and Fisher's exact test. Significantly associated variables were also evaluated using multiple correspondence analysis. The primary function of the facility most reported was recreational horse use (62%). Nearly all operations (n = 79) had pasture available, with 57...
Laroucau K, Aaziz R, Vorimore F, Varghese K, Deshayes T, Bertin C, Delannoy S, Sami AM, Al Batel M, El Shorbagy M, Almutawaa KAW, Alanezi SJ....Glanders is a contagious zoonotic disease caused by Burkholderia mallei. Following the detection of glanders positive horses using the OIE complement fixation test, the tissues of two horses were analysed by PCR. While PCR systems targeting the Burkholderia pseudomallei complex gave positive signals, the species-specific PCR systems targeting B. mallei (fliP-IS407A) and B. pseudomallei (orf11)-the OIE recommended targets-resulted in negative signals. However, the presence of B. mallei in these tissues was confirmed with a recently described B. mallei-specific real-time PCR system and genot...
Tapia D, Sanchez-Villamil JI, Torres AG.Burkholderia mallei (Bm) is a facultative intracellular pathogen and the etiological agent of glanders, a highly infectious zoonotic disease occurring in equines and humans. The intrinsic resistance to antibiotics, lack of specific therapy, high mortality, and history as a biothreat agent, prompt the need of a safe and effective vaccine. However, the limited knowledge of protective Bm-specific antigens has hampered the development of a vaccine. Further, the use of antigen-delivery systems that enhance antigen immunogenicity and elicit robust antigen-specific immune responses has been limited a...
van Rijn PA, Maris-Veldhuis MA, Grobler M, Wright IM, Erasmus BJ, Maartens LH, Potgieter CA.African horse sickness virus (AHSV) is a virus species in the genus Orbivirus of the family Reoviridae causing African Horse Sickness (AHS) in equids with a mortality of about 95% in naïve horses. AHS causes serious losses in developing countries where horses play a central role in draft power and transportation. There are nine AHSV serotypes inducing no or low cross-neutralizing antibodies. AHSV is spread by biting Culicoides midges. AHS is endemic in sub-Saharan Africa, and a serious threat outside Africa, since Culicoides species in moderate climate conditions are spreading the closely rel...
Mera Y Sierra R, Neira G, Bargues MD, Cuervo PF, Artigas P, Logarzo L, Cortiñas G, Ibaceta DEJ, Lopez Garrido A, Bisutti E, Mas-Coma S.Fascioliasis is a zoonotic disease caused by liver flukes transmitted by freshwater lymnaeid snails. Donkey and horse reservoir roles have been highlighted in human endemic areas. Liver fluke infection in mules has received very limited research. Their role in disease transmission, epidemiological importance and Fasciola hepatica pathogenicity are studied for the first time. Prevalence was 39.5% in 81 mules from Aconcagua, and 24.4% in 127 from Uspallata, in high-altitude areas of Mendoza province, Argentina. A mean amount of 101,242 eggs/mule/day is estimated. Lymnaeids from Uspallata proved ...
Tahoun A, Elnafarawy HK, Elmahallawy EK, Abdelhady A, Rizk AM, El-Sharkawy H, Youssef MA, El-Khodery S, Ibrahim HMM.Diagnosis and treatment of ocular fungal infection in equine seems very challenging for owners and clinicians. The present study aimed to identify and characterize fungal species isolated from the eyes of clinically healthy and diseased equines (N = 100) from Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt. The work also involved morphological and molecular characterization of the major fungal species. In addition, correlations between the occurrence of isolated fungi and some of the potential risk factors were also investigated. Interestingly, the prevalence rate of ocular mycosis in all examined equines in the ...
Abigail McGlennon of the Animal Health Trust and Andrea Vilela of the Redwings Horse Sanctuary describe the creation and impact of a new initiative to tackle strangles in UK horses.
Guerrero-Carvajal F, Bravo-Barriga D, Martín-Cuervo M, Aguilera-Sepúlveda P, Ferraguti M, Jiménez-Clavero MÁ, Llorente F, Alonso JM, Frontera E.West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne emerging virus in Europe with capacity to cause neurological complications such as encephalitis or meningoencephalitis in humans, birds or equids. In Spain, WNV is actively circulating in mosquitoes, birds and horses in different regions, but never has been deeply studied in Extremadura. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the seroprevalence of WNV in equids of those areas and to analyse the risk factors associated with exposure to the virus. A total of 199 out of 725 equids presented antibodies against WNV by competition ELISA (27.45%), w...
Rossi SL, Russell-Lodrigue KE, Plante KS, Bergren NA, Gorchakov R, Roy CJ, Weaver SC.Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is a re-emerging virus of human, agriculture, and bioweapon threat importance. No FDA-approved treatment is available to combat Venezuelan equine encephalitis in humans, prompting the need to create a vaccine that is safe, efficacious, and cannot be replicated in the mosquito vector. Here we describe the use of a serotype ID VEEV (ZPC-738) vaccine with an internal ribosome entry site (IRES) to alter gene expression patterns. This ZPC/IRES vaccine was genetically engineered in two ways based on the position of the IRES insertion to create a vaccine th...
Williamson KM, Wheeler S, Kerr J, Bennett J, Freeman P, Kohlhagen J, Peel AJ, Eby P, Merritt T, Housen T, Dalton C, Durrheim DN.In June 2019 the first equine case of Hendra virus in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia was detected. An urgent human and animal health response took place, involving biosecurity measures, contact tracing, promotion of equine vaccinations and investigation of flying fox activity in the area. No human or additional animal cases occurred. Equine vaccination uptake increased by over 30-fold in the surrounding region in the three months following the case. Black flying fox and grey-headed flying fox species were detected in the Valley. The incident prompted review of Hendra virus resou...
Rodríguez M, Joseph S, Pfeffer M, Raghavan R, Wernery U.African horse sickness (AHS) is a serious viral disease of equids resulting in the deaths of many equids in sub-Saharan Africa that has been recognized for centuries. This has significant economic impact on the horse industry, despite the good husbandry practices. Currently, prevention and control of the disease is based on administration of live attenuated vaccines and control of the arthropod vectors. Results: A total of 29 horses in 2 groups, were vaccinated. Eighteen horses in Group 1 were further divided into 9 subgroups of 2 horses each, were individually immunised with one of 1 to 9 AHS...
Collado-Mateo D, Lavín-Pérez AM, Fuentes García JP, García-Gordillo MÁ, Villafaina S.Background and objectives: Chronic pain is a complex global public health problem that affects the health status, quality of life, activities of daily living, and different work-related variables. Riding a horse may lead to some benefits in chronic pain patients through the improvement of postural control and other biopsychosocial processes. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effects of horse riding (with real or simulated horses) on chronic pain. Materials and methods: A systematic literature search was carried out in accordance with PRISMA guidelines in...
Bakhshi H, Beck C, Lecollinet S, Monier M, Mousson L, Zakeri S, Raz A, Arzamani K, Nourani L, Dinparast-Djadid N, Failloux AB.Recent expansion of arboviruses such as West Nile (WNV), Usutu (USUV), and tick-borne encephalitis (TBEV) over their natural range of distribution needs strengthening their surveillance. As common viral vertebrate hosts, birds and horses deserve special attention with routine serological surveillance. Here, we estimated the seroprevalence of WNV, USUV and TBEV in 160 migrating/resident birds and 60 horses sampled in Mazandaran, Golestan, North Khorasan, Kordestan provinces and Golestan province of Iran respectively. ELISA results showed that of 220 collected samples, 32 samples (14.54%), inclu...
Bergmann IM.The idea of what is natural has particular relevance in the thoroughbred racing and breeding discourse. It guides breeding regulations; influences how the thoroughbreds' behaviour is perceived and has implications for husbandry, handling, training and racing practices. This study investigates how key industry and animal advocacy informants based in the US, Australia and the UK conceptualise naturalness within the context of common racing practices that potentially impact the horses' welfare. The informants were interviewed using semi-structured interviewing and photo-elicitation. Four common i...
Sukmawinata E, Sato W, Uemura R, Kanda T, Kusano K, Kambayashi Y, Sato T, Ishikawa Y, Toya R, Sueyoshi M.In this study, the occurrence of antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) enterococci was evaluated in Thoroughbred (TB) racehorses in Japan. Fecal samples were collected from 212 healthy TB racehorses at the Miho and Ritto Training Centers of the Japan Racing Association from March 2017 to August 2018. Isolation and identification were performed by enterococcus selective medium and confirmed to the species using MALDI-TOF MS. Enterococcus faecium and E. faecalis isolates were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility test against 11 antimicrobials by minimum inhibitory concentration based on recommenda...
Akter R, Stent AW, Sansom FM, Gilkerson JR, Burden C, Devlin JM, Legione AR, El-Hage CM.Chlamydia psittaci was detected by PCR in the lung and equine foetal membranes of two aborted equine foetuses and one weak foal from two different studs in Victoria, Australia. The abortions occurred in September 2019 in two mares sharing a paddock northeast of Melbourne. The weak foal was born in October 2019 in a similar geographical region and died soon after birth despite receiving veterinary care. The detection of C. psittaci DNA in the lung and equine foetal membranes of the aborted or weak foals and the absence of any other factors that are commonly associated with abortion or neonatal ...
Carrera JP, Pittí Y, Molares-Martínez JC, Casal E, Pereyra-Elias R, Saenz L, Guerrero I, Galué J, Rodriguez-Alvarez F, Jackman C, Pascale JM....Human cases of Madariaga virus (MADV) infection were first detected during an outbreak in 2010 in eastern Panama, where Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) also circulates. Little is known about the long-term consequences of either alphavirus infection. Methods: A follow-up study of the 2010 outbreak was undertaken in 2015. An additional survey was carried out 2 weeks after a separate 2017 alphavirus outbreak in a neighboring population in eastern Panama. Serological studies and statistical analyses were undertaken in both populations. Results: Among the originally alphavirus-seronegat...
How MJ, Gonzales D, Irwin A, Caro T.Of all hypotheses advanced for why zebras have stripes, avoidance of biting fly attack receives by far the most support, yet the mechanisms by which stripes thwart landings are not yet understood. A logical and popular hypothesis is that stripes interfere with optic flow patterns needed by flying insects to execute controlled landings. This could occur through disrupting the radial symmetry of optic flow via the aperture effect (i.e. generation of false motion cues by straight edges), or through spatio-temporal aliasing (i.e. misregistration of repeated features) of evenly spaced stripes. By r...
Hussain A, Jamil T, Tareen AM, Melzer F, Hussain MH, Khan I, Saqib M, Zohaib A, Hussain R, Ahmad W, Iqbal M, Neubauer H.Brucellosis is an important zoonosis worldwide. Equines are susceptible to the infection when in close contact with infected animals. The objective of our study was to update the existing knowledge and detect and differentiate the causative agent of brucellosis in breeding equines in Punjab, Pakistan. A cross-sectional study was designed to evaluate the occurrence and etiology of the infection in the equine population in three districts. A total of 448 equine sera were collected from three prefectures viz. Sahiwal, Khanewal, and Okara of the Punjab Province of Pakistan. Ninety-six (21.4%) samp...
Diallo AA, Souley MM, Issa Ibrahim A, Alassane A, Issa R, Gagara H, Yaou B, Issiakou A, Diop M, Ba Diouf RO, Lo FT, Lo MM, Bakhoum T, Sylla M....Since November 2018, several countries in West and Central Africa have reported mortalities in donkeys and horses. Specifically, more than 66,000 horses and donkeys have succumbed to disease in Burkina Faso, Chad, Cameroon, The Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal. Strangles caused by Streptococcus equi subsp equi, African Horse Sickness (AHS) virus, and Equine influenza virus (EIV) were all suspected as potential causative agents. This study reports the identification of EIV in field samples collected in Niger and Senegal. Phylogenetic analysis of the hemagglutinin and neuraminida...
Kostopoulou D, Casaert S, Tzanidakis N, van Doorn D, Demeler J, von Samson-Himmelstjerna G, Saratsis A, Voutzourakis N, Ehsan A, Doornaert T....Faecal samples were collected from foals between the age of 1 week and 6 months in Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany and Greece. A quantitative direct immunofluorescence assay based on the commercial MERIFLUOR Cryptosporidium/Giardia kit was performed to evaluate the presence of (oo) cysts. Parasite positive samples were genotyped, based on the 18S ribosomal DNA gene and the heat shock protein (HSP70) gene for Cryptosporidium and on the β-giardin gene and the triose phosphate isomerase (TPI) gene for Giardia. In total, 134 foals from Belgium, 44 foals from The Netherlands, 30 foals from Germa...
Maddox TW, Pinchbeck GL, Clegg PD, Wedley AL, Dawson S, Williams NJ.The increasing prevalence of antimicrobial resistant bacteria such as antimicrobial-resistant and extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli represents a significant problem for human and veterinary medicine. Despite this, the risk factors for faecal carriage of such bacteria by horses in the UK, particularly those in the wider community, have not been well described. Objective: To characterise the risk factors for faecal carriage of antimicrobial-resistant E. coli amongst horses in the mainland UK. Methods: A cross-sectional study of horses recruited by 65 randomly selec...
Murphy TW, McCollum WH, Timoney PJ, Klingeborn BW, Hyllseth B, Golnik W, Erasmus B.Equine arteritis virus (EAV), a non-arthropod borne togavirus, has been shown to have a global distribution. To date, no major antigenic variation has been demonstrated between EAV isolates from different geographic origins. In this study, the genomic RNA of EAV isolates obtained from horses of different breeds in various countries around the world was oligonucleotide fingerprinted. Comparisons of these fingerprints were used to determine the extent of genomic variation among such isolates. Comparisons among isolates from North American horses revealed, for the most part, oligonucleotide homol...
Epp T, Waldner C, West K, Townsend H.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...
Pan L, Zhang L, Fan D, Zhang X, Liu H, Lu Q, Xu Q.Q fever is the most widespread zoonosis, and domestic animals are the most common sources of transmission. It is not only difficult to distinguish from other febrile diseases because of the lack of specific clinical manifestations in humans, but it is also difficult to identify the disease in C. burnetii-carrying animals because of the lack of identifiable features. Conventional serodiagnosis requires sera from the acute and convalescent stages of infection, which are unavailable at early diagnosis. Nested PCR and real-time PCR require equipment. In this study, we developed a Loop-Mediated Iso...
Schnepf A, Bienert-Zeit A, Ertugrul H, Wagels R, Werner N, Hartmann M, Feige K, Kreienbrock L.The usage of antimicrobial drugs (AMs) leads to an increase in antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Although different antimicrobial usage (AMU) monitoring programs exist for livestock animals in Germany, there is no such system for horses. However, with the increasing usage of electronic practice management software (EPMS), it is possible to analyze electronic field data generated for routine purposes. The aim of this study was to generate AMU data for German horses with data from the Clinic for Horses (CfH), University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (TiHo), and in addition to show that different...
Hausberger M, Lesimple C, Henry S.Horses were domesticated for more than 5000 years and have been one of the most emblematic species living alongside humans. This long-shared history would suggest that horses are well known and well understood, but scientific data raise many concerns about the welfare state of most domestic horses suggesting that many aspects have been largely misunderstood. In the present review, we will examine some of the possible human factors that may explain the huge prevalence of welfare problems, despite horses being of special importance to humans. First of all, as horses are non-verbal, current manag...
Manyweathers J, Field H, Jordan D, Longnecker N, Agho K, Smith C, Taylor M.Hendra virus was identified in horses and humans in 1994, in Queensland, Australia. Flying foxes are the natural host. Horses are thought to acquire infection by direct or indirect contact with infected flying fox urine. Humans are infected from close contact with infected horses. To reduce risk of infection in horses and humans, Australian horse owners are encouraged to vaccinate horses against the virus and adopt property risk mitigation practices that focus on reducing flying fox horse contact and contamination of horses' environment with flying fox bodily fluids. This study investigates up...
Padalino B, Raidal SL, Hall E, Knight P, Celi P, Jeffcott L, Muscatello G.To survey amateur and professional participants on equine transportation management, practices and outcomes in Australia. Methods: An online survey targeting people who organised horse movements at least monthly was made available to a broad cross-section of amateur and professional equine associations. Respondents were invited to provide demographic details and information relating to their routine transportation management practices and their experiences of issues relating to the transportation of horses. Results: Of 797 usable responses involving approximately 17,000 horses and 313,000 indi...
Ganzenberg S, Sieg M, Ziegler U, Pfeffer M, Vahlenkamp TW, Hörügel U, Groschup MH, Lohmann KL.West Nile virus (WNV) infections were first detected in Germany in 2018, but information about WNV seroprevalence in horses is limited. The study's overall goal was to gather information that would help veterinarians, horse owners, and veterinary-, and public health- authorities understand the spread of WNV in Germany and direct protective measures. For this purpose, WNV seroprevalence was determined in counties with and without previously registered WNV infections in horses, and risk factors for seropositivity were estimated. The cohort consisted of privately owned horses from nine counties i...
Condie C, Rivara FP, Bergman AB.Although the risk of serious head injury for horse riders is higher than for most other sports, few equestrians regularly wear protective headgear. This study indicates that riders are well informed about the need for helmets and that the main reason for nonuse is inadequate helmet design. In particular, riders perceive that existing helmets are uncomfortable, expensive, and inappropriate for some riding styles. Based on these findings, the authors developed strategies to increase usage and incorporated them into a successful program. These strategies included working with manufacturers to dev...
Skaff NK, Armstrong PM, Andreadis TG, Cheruvelil KS.Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV) is an expanding mosquito-borne threat to humans and domestic animal populations in the northeastern United States. Outbreaks of EEEV are challenging to predict due to spatial and temporal uncertainty in the abundance and viral infection of Cs. melanura, the principal enzootic vector. EEEV activity may be closely linked to wetlands because they provide essential habitat for mosquito vectors and avian reservoir hosts. However, wetlands are not homogeneous and can vary by vegetation, connectivity, size, and inundation patterns. Wetlands may also have diffe...
Vieira RF, Vieira TS, Nascimento Ddo A, Martins TF, Krawczak FS, Labruna MB, Chandrashekar R, Marcondes M, Biondo AW, Vidotto O.The aims of this study were to determine the seroprevalence of Ehrlichia spp. and risk factors for exposure in a restricted population of dogs, horses, and humans highly exposed to tick bites in a Brazilian rural settlement using a commercial ELISA rapid test and two indirect immunofluorescent assays (IFA) with E. canis and E. chaffeensis crude antigens. Serum samples from 132 dogs, 16 horses and 100 humans were used. Fifty-six out of 132 (42.4%) dogs were seropositive for E. canis. Dogs > one year were more likely to be seropositive for E. canis than dogs ≤ one year (p = 0.0051). Ten/16 (62...
Chevalier V, Dupressoir A, Tran A, Diop OM, Gottland C, Diallo M, Etter E, Ndiaye M, Grosbois V, Dia M, Gaidet N, Sall AA, Soti V, Niang M.In 2005, a serological study was carried out on horses in five ecologically contrasted zones of the Senegal River basin (Senegal) to assess West Nile virus (WNV) transmission and investigate underlying environmental risk factors. In each study zone, horses were randomly selected and blood samples taken. A land-cover map of the five study areas was built using two satellite ETM+ images. Blood samples were screened by ELISA for anti-WNV IgM and IgG and positive samples were confirmed by seroneutralization. Environmental data were analysed using a principal components analysis. The overall IgG se...
Benjelloun A, El Harrak M, Calistri P, Loutfi C, Kabbaj H, Conte A, Ippoliti C, Danzetta ML, Belkadi B.West Nile virus-associated disease is one of the most widespread vector-borne diseases in the world. In Morocco, the first cases were reported in horses in 1996 and the disease re-emerged in 2003 and in 2010. The objective of this work was to study the epidemiological situation of WNV-associated infection in Morocco, by quantifying the seroprevalence of anti-WNV IgM and IgG antibodies in horses in different bioclimatic regions-zones of Morocco in 2011. During the months of May, June and July 2011, 840 serum samples were collected from horses in four regions characterized by different environme...
Blanton JD, Krebs JW, Hanlon CA, Rupprecht CE.During 2005, 49 states and Puerto Rico reported 6,417 cases of rabies in nonhuman animals and 1 case in a human being to the CDC, representing a 6.2% decrease from the 6,836 cases in nonhuman animals and 8 cases in human beings reported in 2004. Approximately 92% of the cases were in wildlife, and 8% were in domestic animals. Relative contributions by the major animal groups were as follows: 2,534 raccoons (39.5%), 1,478 skunks (23%), 1,408 bats (21.9%), 376 foxes (5.9%), 269 cats (4.2%), 93 cattle (1.5%), and 76 dogs (1.2%). Compared with numbers of reported cases in 2004, cases in 2005 decre...
Neospora infections due to Neospora caninum and N. hughesi are prevalent among equids of the world. The disease may affect reproductive and neurological consequences. The present systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the global Neospora seroprevalence among horses and donkeys. A number of 57 out of 1575 total retrieved studies were included by searching the PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, Web of Science and ProQuest. A total of 25,783 horses and 4377 donkeys were examined serologically, yielding a weighted seroprevalence of 13.46 % (95 % CI: 10.26 %-17.42 %) globally. S...
Songsermsakul P, Sontag G, Cichna-Markl M, Zentek J, Razzazi-Fazeli E.The paper describes a method for the sensitive and selective determination of zearalenone and its metabolites in urine, plasma and faeces of horses by high performance liquid chromatography and atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation (APCI) mass spectrometry (MS). While only one step sample clean-up by an immunoaffinity column (IAC) was sufficient for plasma samples, urine and faeces samples had to be prepared by a combination of a solid-phase extraction (SPE) and an immunoaffinity column. The method allows the simultaneous determination of zearalenone and all of its metabolites; alpha-zearal...
Efforts to detect West Nile virus (WNV) in the Vojvodina province, northern Serbia, commenced with human and mosquito surveillance in 2005, followed by horse (2009) and wild bird (2012) surveillance. The knowledge obtained regarding WNV circulation, combined with the need for timely detection of virus activity and risk assessment resulted in the implementation of a national surveillance programme integrating mosquito, horse and bird surveillance in 2014. From 2013, the system showed highly satisfactory results in terms of area specificity (the capacity to indicate the spatial distribution of t...
Weese JS.Fortunately, MRSA infection and colonization are currently uncommon in veterinary medicine. Nevertheless, the increasing reports of the occurrence of MRSA infection in horses, veterinarians, and equine personnel dictate that serious consideration be given to the control of this pathogen in veterinary hospitals as well as in the equine community. It is unclear whether extrapolation from human hospitals and people in the community is appropriate; however, given the rapid increase in nosocomial MRSA in human hospitals and the recent shift of certain clones of MRSA into the community, it would be ...
Eckert V, Lockemann U, Püschel K, Meenen NM, Hessler C.To analyze horse-related accidents caused by hoof kicks. Methods: Prospective study to evaluate hoof kick-related accidents. Methods: Multicenter study, including 9 trauma centers in Hamburg, Germany. Methods: Patients who were treated as the result of a hoof kick between January 1, 2010, and May 1, 2010, were included in the study. Methods: Horse and rider qualifications, riders' use of protective equipment, location and activity at time of accident, mechanism of injury, injuries sustained, and treatment required for these injuries. Results: Twenty-four equestrians received hoof kicks. The av...
Bouzalas IG, Diakakis N, Chaintoutis SC, Brellou GD, Papanastassopoulou M, Danis K, Vlemmas I, Seuberlich T, Dovas CI.During the summer of 2010, an outbreak of West Nile virus (WNV) infections attributed to a lineage 2 WNV strain was reported among humans and horses in Central Macedonia, Northern Greece. Here, the clinical and laboratory investigation of horses that showed severe neurological signs due to WNV infection is being described. Specifically, between August and September 2010, 17 horses with neurological signs were detected. WNV infection was confirmed in all 17 clinical cases by applying laboratory testing. The duration of WNV-specific IgM antibodies in sera obtained from seven of the clinically af...
de Araújo Silva DO, Matis GK, Costa LF, Kitamura MA, de Carvalho Junior EV, de Moura Silva M, Barbosa BJ, Pereira CU, da Silva JC, Birbilis TA....To present the accumulated experience from treating chronic subdural hematomas (CSDH) in a local hospital of a third world country. Methods: One hundred and twenty-five consecutive patients with CSDH who were surgically treated in the Neurosurgical Department of the Hospital da Restauração, Recife-PE, Brazil, between January 2006 and May 2008, were retrospectively studied. Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) was employed to define outcome at 6 months as good (GOS 4 and 5) or poor (GOS ≤ 3). Age, admission Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), location of hematomas (unilateral/bilateral), drainage system place...
Martin G, Yanez-Arenas C, Plowright RK, Chen C, Roberts B, Skerratt LF.Understanding environmental factors driving spatiotemporal patterns of disease can improve risk mitigation strategies. Hendra virus (HeV), discovered in Australia in 1994, spills over from bats (Pteropus sp.) to horses and thence to humans. Below latitude - 22°, almost all spillover events to horses occur during winter, and above this latitude spillover is aseasonal. We generated a statistical model of environmental drivers of HeV spillover per month. The model reproduced the spatiotemporal pattern of spillover risk between 1994 and 2015. The model was generated with an ensemble of methods f...
Tsegay K, Potts AD, Aklilu N, Lötter C, Gummow B.Little work has been done on diseases of horses in Ethiopia or tropical regions of the world. Yet, Ethiopia has the largest horse population in Africa and their horses play a pivotal role in their economy as traction animals. A serological and questionnaire survey was therefore conducted to determine the circulating serovars of Leptospira and their association with potential risk factors in the cart horse population of Central and Southern Ethiopia. A total of 184 out of 418 cart horses from 13 districts had antibody titres of 1:100 or greater to at least one of 16 serovars of Leptospira speci...
Drolet BS, Reeves WK, Bennett KE, Pauszek SJ, Bertram MR, Rodriguez LL.In 2006, vesicular stomatitis New Jersey virus (VSNJV) caused outbreaks in Wyoming (WY) horses and cattle after overwintering in 2004 and 2005. Within two weeks of the outbreak onset, 12,203 biting flies and 194 grasshoppers were collected near three equine-positive premises in Natrona County, WY. Insects were identified to the species level and tested by RT-qPCR for VSNJV polymerase (L) and phosphoprotein (P) gene RNA. Collected dipterans known to be competent for VSV transmission included Simulium black flies and Culicoides biting midges. VSNJV L and P RNA was detected in two pools of female...
Quiambao BP, Dytioco HZ, Dizon RM, Crisostomo ME, Laot TM, Teuwen DE.Recommended treatment for severe rabies exposure in unvaccinated individuals includes wound cleaning, administration of rabies immunoglobulins (RIG), and rabies vaccination. We conducted a survey of rabies treatment outcomes in the Philippines. Methods: This was a case series involving 7,660 patients (4 months to 98 years of age) given purified equine RIG (pERIG) at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (Muntinlupa, Philippines) from July 2003 to August 2004 following Category II or III exposures. Data on local and systemic adverse reactions (AR) within 28 days and biting animal status ...
Uggla A, Mattson S, Juntti N.Samples of serum or plasma taken during 1986 and 1987 from 244 pet cats, 303 dogs and 219 horses, randomly selected among animals referred to the Animal Clinics of the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, were screened by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii. 42% of cats, 23% of dogs and 1% of horses examined were found seropositive. Serum eller plasma från 244 tamkatter, 303 hundar och 219 sporthästar som provtagits vid djur-klinikerna vid Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet i Uppsala under 1986 och 1987 testades med ELISA för antikroppar mot Pre...
Kuroda T, Kinoshita Y, Niwa H, Shinzaki Y, Tamura N, Hobo S, Kuwano A.Meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections have been confirmed in hospitalised Thoroughbred racehorses at the hospitals of two training centres in Japan since 2009. To investigate the source of infection, the authors examined the rate of nasal MRSA colonisation in 600 healthy Thoroughbred racehorses, 53 veterinarians and 16 office staff at the racehorse hospitals of the two training centres. MRSA was not isolated from healthy Thoroughbred racehorses or hospital office staff. However, MRSA was isolated from 16 veterinarians (30.1 per cent), and the colonisation rate was signif...
Lundgren EJ, Ramp D, Stromberg JC, Wu J, Nieto NC, Sluk M, Moeller KT, Wallach AD.Megafauna play important roles in the biosphere, yet little is known about how they shape dryland ecosystems. We report on an overlooked form of ecosystem engineering by donkeys and horses. In the deserts of North America, digging of ≤2-meter wells to groundwater by feral equids increased the density of water features, reduced distances between waters, and, at times, provided the only water present. Vertebrate richness and activity were higher at equid wells than at adjacent dry sites, and, by mimicking flood disturbance, equid wells became nurseries for riparian trees. Our results suggest t...
