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.
Mustefa A, Engdawork A, Sinke S.Ethiopian horses are multipurpose horses that have socioeconomic significance for smallholder farmers. However, studies regarding their husbandry practices have received little attention. Thus, the current study was conducted to assess the horse husbandry practices in the southwest Ethiopia. Data were collected through semi-structured questionnaires from a total of 196 randomly selected respondents. The general linear model and frequency procedures of the Statistical Analysis System (SAS 9.0) were used to analyze the quantitative and qualitative data, while indices were calculated using Micros...
Ritter B, Dastagir N, Tamulevicius M, Bucher F, Obed D, Vogt PM, Dastagir K.Hand injuries are frequently caused by sports and are associated with long periods of inability to work and high economic health costs. After ball sports and cycling, the most common cause of hand injuries is horseback riding. Therefore, measures should be taken to prevent these risks and increase safety in sports, however data characterizing equestrian sports-associated injuries are limited. Methods: A retrospective monocentric cohort study was performed including 39 patients (mean age: 35 ± 2.6 (range 9-65) years, female 89.7% who sustained an injury to the hand while practicing equestr...
Ríos Carrasco M, Gröne A, van den Brand JMA, de Vries RP.Influenza A viruses (IAVs) from the H5N1 2.3.4.4b clade are circulating in dairy farms in the USA.; ruminants were presumed not to be hosts for IAVs. Previously, IAV-positive mammalian species were hunters and scavengers, possibly getting infected while feeding on infected birds. It is now recognized that H5N1 viruses that circulate in US dairy cattle transmit through a mammary gland route, in contrast to transmission by aerosols via the respiratory tract. The sialome in the cow mammary and respiratory tract is so far solely defined using plant lectins. Here, we used recombinant HA proteins re...
Samir A, Abdel-Moein KA, Zaher HM.The upsurge of diarrheagenic E. coli pathotypes carrying extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs)/plasmid-mediated AmpC β-lactamase (pAmpC) among animals constitutes an emerging threat for humans and animals. This study investigated the burden of ESBL-/pAmpC-producing diarrheagenic E. coli among diarrheic foals and its potential public health implications. Rectal swabs were collected from 80 diarrheic foals. These swabs were processed to isolate and identify ESBL/pAmpC-producing E. coli using a selective culture medium, biochemical tests, phenotypic identification, and molecular identificati...
Cabrera G, Cabezas C, Estay-Olea D, Stoore C, Baquedano MS, Paredes R, Hidalgo C.Liver fluke infection, caused by the trematode Fasciola hepatica, is a parasitic zoonotic disease affecting various mammals, including humans, and has significant implications for public, animal, and ecosystem health. This study provides the first genetic characterization of F. hepatica in Chile, focusing on the complete mitochondrial gene cox1. Samples were collected from two different host species: cattle and horses. Our findings revealed that 70 % of detected haplotypes were found in either cattle or horses, which coincides with their geographical origin. Interestingly, the use of full-len...
Ali YH, Mohieddeen TAG, Abdellatif MM, Ahmed BM, Saeed IK, Attaalfadeel HM, Ali AA.Rabies is endemic in Sudan with continuing outbreaks occurring annually, the most common animals affected are dogs, followed by goats and equids. This work focused on equid rabies, to elucidate the current situation of the disease through analysis of reports of equid rabies outbreaks in Sudan during 2010-2022 supported by laboratory confirmation of the disease. During the study period, 66 animals were affected during 35 equid rabies outbreaks. The highest incidences were found in Al Gezira (30.3%), followed by Darfur (24.2%) and Kordofan (15.2%). The highest incidence rate was observed during ...
de Oliveira UV, Varjão JL, de Jesus Deiró AG, Maciel BM, Silva FL, Pinheiro AM, Gondim LFP, Munhoz AD.The aim of this study was to isolate from equids destined for slaughter in a Brazilian slaughterhouse. A total of 354 equids were analyzed, with blood samples collected from all the animals and samples of masseter muscle and brain tissue collected from 319 animals. A serological test was conducted to detect equids with specific antibodies for . Molecular detection of by nested PCR was performed on the tissue samples collected. Tissue samples were tested by murine bioassay in an attempt to isolate either the parasite or the parasite DNA. Real-time PCR was performed on the brain samples from 1...
To provide some glimpses on the possibility of shaping the human gut microbiome (GM) through probiotic exchange with natural ecosystems, here we explored the impact of 15 days of daily interaction with horses on the GM of 10 urban-living Italian children. Specifically, the children were in close contact with the horses in an "educational farm", where they spent almost 10 h/day interacting with the animals. The children's GM was assessed before and after the horse interaction using metabarcoding sequencing and shotgun metagenomics, along with the horses' skin, oral and fecal microbiomes. Targ...
In recent decades, the integration of horses (Equus ferus) in European rewilding initiatives has gained widespread popularity due to their potential for regulating vegetation and restoring natural ecosystems. However, employing horses in conservation efforts presents important challenges, which we here explore and discuss. These challenges encompass the lack of consensus on key terms inherent to conservation and rewilding, the entrenched culture and strong emotions associated with horses, low genetic diversity and high susceptibility to hereditary diseases in animals under human selection, as ...
Eskola K, Aimo-Koivisto E, Heikinheimo A, Mykkänen A, Hautajärvi T, Grönthal T.Extended-spectrum β-lactamase -producing Enterobacterales (ESBL-E) are important zoonotic pathogens that can cause serious clinical infections, also in horses. Preventing the spread of ESBL-E, especially in the equine hospital environment, is key to reducing the number of difficult-to-treat infections. Estimating the local prevalence of ESBL-E in horses is crucial to establish targeted infection control programs at equine hospitals. We conducted a prevalence and risk factor study in equine patients on admission to an equine teaching hospital in Finland through a rectal ESBL-E screening specim...
Haase L, Sedlmayr B, Jung IC, Sedlmayr M, Monett D, Winter J.Existing research agrees that a well-thought design of the user interface is a key point for an mHealth application for animal owners, supporting them obtain information and make decisions regarding their pet's specific situation. However, there is currently a lack of specific advice on the design of such an application. Methods: As part of a user-centered design (UCD) process, a formative, explorative usability test with n = 5 users was conducted for collecting design ideas. The test was conducted for two applications that were already available on the market. Results: The need of supporting ...
Stigson H, Klingegård M.Equestrian sports, also referred to as equestrianism, is practiced all over the world and a popular leisure activity in Sweden. Equestrianism is the country's second-largest youth sport, and previous studies indicate that accidents are common in equestrianism. However, few previous studies have examined acute equestrian injuries leading to permanent medical impairment (PMI). Methods: By using nationwide insurance data comprising all injured equestrians registered in the Swedish Equestrian Federation, the aim was to analyse characteristics of equestrian accidents and particularly injuries leadi...
Kim LD, Kreitner K, Scott DM, Seabaugh K, Duncan CG, Magzamen S.Limited research exists on impacts of air pollution on non-human mammals, particularly animal athletes such as Thoroughbred racehorses. Athletes have a greater risk of exposure as heightened exertion and increased airflow carry more pollutants deeper into the respiratory tract. Objective: To provide insights into the impact of ambient air pollution, particularly fine particulate matter (PM), on race speed. Methods: Retrospective observational study. Methods: Data were obtained from The Jockey Club Information Systems, covering 31 407 winning races by Thoroughbred horses in California spannin...
Tyrnenopoulou P, Tsilipounidaki K, Florou Z, Gkountinoudis CG, Tyropoli K, Starras A, Peleki C, Marneris D, Arseniou N, Lianou DT, Katsarou EI....The objectives of this study were (a) to detect zoonotic gastrointestinal pathogens in faecal samples of horses using the FilmArray GI Panel and (b) to identify variables potentially associated with their presence. Faecal samples collected from 224 horses obtained during a countrywide study in Greece were tested by means of the BioFire FilmArray Gastrointestinal (GI) Panel, which uses multiplex-PCR technology for the detection of 22 pathogens. Gastrointestinal pathogens were detected in the faecal samples obtained from 97 horses (43.3%). Zoonotic pathogens were detected more frequently in samp...
Kannekens-Jager MM, Duim B, der Graaf-van Bloois LV, Zomer AL, Broekhuizen-Stins MJ, Boswinkel M, Wagenaar JA, Broens EM.In 2020 and 2022, nine cases of surgical site infections with a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were diagnosed in horses in an equine referral clinic. Sixteen isolates (horses, n=9; environment, n=3; and staff members, n=4) were analysed retrospectively using Nanopore whole-genome sequencing to investigate the relatedness of two suspected MRSA outbreaks (2020 and 2022). The MRSA isolates belonged to ST398 and ST612. ST398 genomes from 2020 and 2022 formed three phylogenetic clusters. The first ST398 cluster from 2020 consisted of isolates from five horses and one staff membe...
Papouskova A, Drabkova Z, Brajerova M, Krutova M, Cizek A, Tkadlec J.We performed a retrospective analysis of MRSA isolates collected at the university equine clinic including clinical isolates from 2008 to 2021 and screening environmental, equine and personnel isolates from 2016. Screening and clinical samples were cultured on Brilliance MRSA 2 and Columbia agar (Oxoid), respectively, with enrichment for environmental samples. Antimicrobial susceptibility was assessed by disc diffusion. All the isolates were characterized by spa typing. Eighteen selected isolates were subjected to WGS with subsequent wgMLST clonal analysis. Among 75 MRSA isolates, five spa typ...
Campos AS, Franco AC, Godinho FM, Huff R, Candido DS, da Cruz Cardoso J, Hua X, Claro IM, Morais P, Franceschina C, de Lima Bermann T, Dos Santos FM....Western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV) is a mosquitoborne virus that reemerged in December 2023 in Argentina and Uruguay, causing a major outbreak. We investigated the outbreak using epidemiologic, entomological, and genomic analyses, focusing on WEEV circulation near the Argentina‒Uruguay border in Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. During November 2023‒April 2024, the outbreak in Argentina and Uruguay resulted in 217 human cases, 12 of which were fatal, and 2,548 equine cases. We determined cases on the basis of laboratory and clinical epidemiologic criteria. We characterized 3 fatal equ...
de Andrade Santos FO, Souza-Santos C, Passos AA, Nunes de Santana Campos R, Martins-Filho PR, Arida RM, Teixeira-Machado L.People with active epilepsy, which is often associated with specific neurological conditions, endure significant impairments in quality of life (QoL) and functioning, particularly those in middle-income countries. Physical intervention plays an essential role in addressing these challenges. This study investigated the impact of equine-assisted therapy (EAT) on QoL, functional independence, sleep quality, antiseizure medications, and frequency of seizures among people with epilepsy (PWE), with or without additional neurological conditions. Fourteen participants aged 4-34 years old diagnosed wi...
McGill S, Coleman R, Hayes M.Indoor arenas do not always include mechanical ventilation or stirring fans and occupancy by horses and humans can be sporadic and inconsistent, which creates a challenging space for understanding and predicting variations in temperature, moisture, and airflow. To understand the interior environment within indoor arenas, monitoring was conducted at 15 facilities within 200 kilometres of Lexington, KY. Environmental monitoring of dry bulb temperature, relative humidity, dew point temperature, air speeds, and solar radiation took place over 7 days in the winter and summer to examine temporal var...
Šenica P, Žele Vengušt D, Vengušt G, Kuhar U.Rotaviruses A (RVA) are a major cause of acute viral gastroenteritis in humans worldwide and are responsible for about two million hospitalizations per year. They can also infect other mammals such as pigs, calves, goats, lambs, and horses, in which they are also considered a major cause of viral diarrhea. While RVA is well studied in humans and domestic animals, its occurrence in wild ruminants is not well known. The RVA genome is a double-stranded RNA consisting of 11 segments, and genotyping is based on the VP7 (G) and VP4 (P) segments. Currently, there are 42G genotypes and 58P genotypes. ...
Ventura MCDS, Neves JMM, Pinheiro RDS, Santos MVC, de Lemos ERS, Horta MAP.Rabies, a zoonotic viral disease, poses a significant threat due to its adaptability to diverse environments. Herbivore rabies, predominantly affecting cattle, horses, and goats in Brazil, remains a concern, results in substantial losses in the livestock industry, and poses risks to public health. Rabies virus transmission, primarily through hematophagous bats in Latin America, underscores the need for effective strategies, and vaccination plays a crucial role in controlling herbivorous rabies, with systematic vaccination beingly the primary method. Efforts to control rabies in herbivores incl...
Martínez-Sáez L, Pala S, Marín-García PJ, Llobat L.Toxoplasmosis is one of the most common parasitic zoonoses and represents a significant health risk for humans, especially for immunodeficient patients. The main transmission route is by oral uptake of oocysts and consumption of undercooked meat of infected animals. Different species have been evaluated as possible reservoirs of the parasite, but few studies have been carried out to examine the role of horses in transmission of the disease. Given the proximity of these animals to humans and the widespread consumption of their meat in many countries, including the Mediterranean basin, it is imp...
Elzahaby D, Mirra A, Levionnois OL, Spadavecchia C.Inhalational anaesthetic agents are routinely used in veterinary anaesthesia practices, yet their consumption contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and environmental impact. We conducted a 55-day observational study at a veterinary teaching hospital in Switzerland, monitoring isoflurane and sevoflurane consumption across small, equine and farm animal clinics and analysed the resulting environmental impact. Results revealed that in total, 9.36 L of isoflurane and 1.27 L of sevoflurane were used to anaesthetise 409 animals across 1,489 h. Consumption rates varied among species...
White NA, Flynn K.The purpose of the study was to assess the challenges faced by state animal health officials (SAHOs) when managing equine disease outbreaks. Methods: A survey was conducted to assess SAHOs' collaboration with horse owners and practicing veterinarians to provide biosecurity and infection disease control. It was sent to 180 email addresses listed in the Equine Disease Communication Center website database. The responses in each category for each question were tabulated and reported as a percentage. Results: There were 72 survey responses from 45 states. The number of states responding suggested ...
Morais DA, Nunes BC, Barnabé NNC, Anjos DM, Bezerra CS, Costa DF, Santos CSAB, Azevedo SS, Alves CJ.Leptospirosis is an anthropozoonosis of economic and public health importance, caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira. Horses are deemed important in its transmission chain due to their proximity to humans, and because the species is often asymptomatic, making these animals potential silent reservoirs. In this context, the objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of seropositive horses for Leptospira spp., and to identify the presence of Leptospira spp. serogroups and antibody titers, the occurrence of areas with higher density of infection cases and demographic characteri...
Fairbanks EL, Daly JM, Tildesley MJ.Most mathematical models that assess the vectorial capacity of disease-transmitting insects typically focus on the influence of climatic factors to predict variations across different times and locations, or examine the impact of vector control interventions to forecast their potential effectiveness. We combine features of existing models to develop a novel model for vectorial capacity that considers both climate and vector control. This model considers how vector control tools affect vectors at each stage of their feeding cycle, and incorporates host availability and preference. Applying this...
Kabir A, Lamichhane B, Habib T, Adams A, El-Sheikh Ali H, Slovis NM, Troedsson MHT, Helmy YA.The equine industry holds substantial economic importance not only in the USA but worldwide. The occurrence of various infectious bacterial diseases in horses can lead to severe health issues, economic losses, and restrictions on horse movement and trade. Effective management and control of these diseases are therefore crucial for the growth and sustainability of the equine industry. While antibiotics constitute the primary treatment strategy for any bacterial infections in horses, developing resistance to clinically important antibiotics poses significant challenges to equine health and welfa...
Schuffenecker I, Peyrefitte CN, el Harrak M, Murri S, Leblond A, Zeller HG.West Nile virus (WNV) reemerged in Morocco in September 2003, causing an equine outbreak. A WNV strain isolated from a brain biopsy was completely sequenced. On the basis of phylogenetic analyses, Moroccan WNV strains isolated during the 1996 and 2003 outbreaks were closely related to other strains responsible for equine outbreaks in the western Mediterranean basin.
Herrera HM, Dávila AM, Norek A, Abreu UG, Souza SS, D'Andrea PS, Jansen AM.In order to better understand the enzootiology of trypanosomiasis caused by Trypanosoma evansi in the Brazilian Pantanal we examined domestic and wild mammals by microhematocrit centrifuge technique (MHCT), immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). T. evansi infection was detected in all species sampled with exception of the sheep and the feral pig. High parasitemias were observed in capybaras (5/24), coatis (18/115), horses (31/321) and dogs (3/112). Among these species, only the capybaras did not develop anemia. Low parasitemias, only detected by PCR, were ...
Kirkland PD, Finlaison DS, Crispe E, Hurt AC.During the 2007 equine influenza outbreak in Australia, respiratory disease in dogs in close contact with infected horses was noted; influenza (H3N8) virus infection was confirmed. Nucleotide sequence of the virus from dogs was identical to that from horses. No evidence of dog-to-dog transmission or virus persistence in dogs was found.
Gramiccia M.The leishmanioses are diseases caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania, parasites infecting numerous mammal species, including humans, and transmitted by the bite of phlebotomine sand flies. They are a large group of diseases ranging over inter-tropical zones of America and Africa, and extend into temperate regions of Latin America, Europe and Asia. Pet animals are found infected with different Leishmania species but Leishmania infantum is the most widespread being dogs the main reservoir of zoonotic visceral leishmaniosis (ZVL). Dogs are very susceptible to this parasite and may suffer fro...
Tozer SJ, Lambert SB, Strong CL, Field HE, Sloots TP, Nissen MD.Q fever is a vaccine-preventable disease; despite this, high annual notification numbers are still recorded in Australia. We have previously shown seroprevalence in Queensland metropolitan regions is approaching that of rural areas. This study investigated the presence of nucleic acid from Coxiella burnetii, the agent responsible for Q fever, in a number of animal and environmental samples collected throughout Queensland, to identify potential sources of human infection. Samples were collected from 129 geographical locations and included urine, faeces and whole blood from 22 different animal s...
Cowled B, Ward MP, Hamilton S, Garner G.Australia experienced a large outbreak of equine influenza in August 2007. Nearly 10000 premises were infected during the epidemic. We used spatial and temporal analytical techniques to describe the epidemic, to quantify important descriptors of the epidemic, and to generate hypotheses about how the epidemic progressed and which control tools assisted in eradication. Spatio-temporal epidemic curves revealed three phases in the epidemic: dispersal, local spread and disease fade out. Spatial dispersal of infection rapidly declined immediately after national movement restrictions were introduced....
Springer A, Glass A, Topp AK, Strube C.Ticks transmit a variety of pathogens affecting both human and animal health. In temperate and cold regions of Europe (Western, Central, Eastern, and Northern Europe), the most relevant zoonotic tick-borne pathogens are tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), Borrelia spp. and Anaplasma phagocytophilum. More rarely, Rickettsia spp., Neoehrlichia mikurensis, and zoonotic Babesia spp. are identified as a cause of human disease. Domestic animals may also be clinically affected by these pathogens, and, furthermore, can be regarded as sentinel hosts for their occurrence in a certain area, or even pla...
Rosef O, Gondrosen B, Kapperud G, Underdal B.A total of 1,262 domestic and wild mammals from Norway were surveyed for fecal carriage of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli. Of the five species of domestic mammals examined, the highest isolation rate was recorded among swine (100.0%), followed by sheep (8.1%) and cows (0.8%). No strains were recovered from horses or goats. Among wild mammals, C. jejuni was isolated from 1 of 23 hares, and no isolated were obtained from three species of cervids and three species of rodents. Of the 133 Campylobacter strains isolated, 114 were classified as C. coli, 18 were C. jejuni biotype 1, and 1...
Liu G, Cao W, Salawudeen A, Zhu W, Emeterio K, Safronetz D, Banadyga L.Vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), which belongs to the Vesiculovirus genus of the family Rhabdoviridae, is a well studied livestock pathogen and prototypic non-segmented, negative-sense RNA virus. Although VSV is responsible for causing economically significant outbreaks of vesicular stomatitis in cattle, horses, and swine, the virus also represents a valuable research tool for molecular biologists and virologists. Indeed, the establishment of a reverse genetics system for the recovery of infectious VSV from cDNA transformed the utility of this virus and paved the way for its use as a vaccine ...
Reisen WK, Meyer RP, Presser SB, Hardy JL.The extrinsic incubation rate (inverse of the time in days from infection to median transmission) of western equine encephalomyelitis (WEE) and St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) viruses by laboratory strains of Culex tarsalis Coquillett increased as a linear function of incubation temperatures from 10 to 30 degrees C. The estimated temperatures for zero transmission thresholds (intercept of the X axis) were 10.9 and 14.9 degrees C, and the number of degree days above these thresholds required for median transmission (inverse of the slope) was 67.6 and 115.2, respectively. Although the bodies of mos...
Browning GF, Chalmers RM, Snodgrass DR, Batt RM, Hart CA, Ormarod SE, Leadon D, Stoneham SJ, Rossdale PD.A survey of 77 normal and 326 diarrhoeic foals in Britain and Ireland from 1987 to 1989 revealed a significantly higher prevalence of Group A rotaviruses and Aeromonas hydrophila in diarrhoeic foals. The prevalence of cryptosporidia, potentially pathogenic Escherichia coli, Yersinia enterocolitica and Clostridium perfringens was similar in normal or diarrhoeic foals. Rotaviruses had a similar prevalence in all age groups of scouring foals up to three months of age, with an overall prevalence of 37 per cent among diarrhoeic foals. The number of cases of diarrhoea varied considerably from year t...
Bide RW, Armour SJ, Yee E.The relationship between body weight (BW) and respiratory minute volume (V(m)) was reviewed by collecting a database from the literature. The data were separated into anaesthetized and non-anaesthetized groups. Only young adult terrestrial mammals were included in the final data set. This database is the largest to be reported to date, is the first to separate the anaesthetized and non-anaesthetized groups and is matched to the target population of young, fit adult humans. The data set of non-anaesthetized animals contained 142 studies representing 2616 animals and 18 species from mice at 12 g...
Weese JS, Caldwell F, Willey BM, Kreiswirth BN, McGeer A, Rousseau J, Low DE.There are increasing reports of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection and colonization in horses and evidence that MRSA can be transmitted between horses and humans. The objective of this study was to investigate reports of skin infection in personnel working with a foal with community-associated MRSA colonization and subsequent infection. Clinical diagnostic specimens were collected from individuals reporting skin lesions following contact with the affected foal. Nasal and groin screening swabs were collected from other veterinary personnel that attended a voluntary scr...
Attoui H, Mendez-Lopez MR, Rao S, Hurtado-Alendes A, Lizaraso-Caparo F, Mohd Jaafar F, Samuel AR, Belhouchet M, Pritchard LI, Melville L, Weir RP....During 1997, two new viruses were isolated from outbreaks of disease that occurred in horses, donkeys, cattle and sheep in Peru. Genome characterization showed that the virus isolated from horses (with neurological disorders, 78% fatality) belongs to a new species the Peruvian horse sickness virus (PHSV), within the genus Orbivirus, family Reoviridae. This represents the first isolation of PHSV, which was subsequently also isolated during 1999, from diseased horses in the Northern Territory of Australia (Elsey virus, ELSV). Serological and molecular studies showed that PHSV and ELSV are very s...
Zoonoses and public healthDecember 23, 2009
Volume 57, Issue 3 211-219 doi: 10.1111/j.1863-2378.2009.01303.x
Calistri P, Giovannini A, Savini G, Monaco F, Bonfanti L, Ceolin C, Terregino C, Tamba M, Cordioli P, Lelli R.After 10 years, West Nile virus (WNV) re-emerged in Italy in August 2008. As on 31 December 2008, the infection affected eight Provinces in three Regions (Emilia Romagna, Veneto, Lombardy), where a total of 794 cases of WNV infection in 251 equine stables were detected on the basis of the clinical signs and as a result of a serological screening in horses living in the area. Only 4.0% (32/794) of the serologically positive animals showed clinical signs, and the 32 clinical cases were reported in 18 different farms. The observed case-fatality rate was 15.6% (5/32). The confirmed clinical cases ...
BMC research notesSeptember 2, 2015
Volume 8 400 doi: 10.1186/s13104-015-1357-8
Digafe RT, Kifelew LG, Mechesso AF.Rabies is a fatal animal disease of significant public health importance. Domestic dogs are the main reservoir and transmitter of this disease particularly in developing countries. Even though rabies is a highly fatal disease, it is a preventable disease. Community awareness about rabies is one of the key components for prevention. This study describes the knowledge, attitudes and practices of a rural community in Gondar Zuria District, Ethiopia. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted from March to June, 2013. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data through face to face...
Hotchkiss JW, Reid SW, Christley RM.Recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) is a commonly encountered respiratory condition of horses. Despite this, the epidemiology of this predominately manageable and reversible disease in Great Britain has been largely ignored. Objective: To estimate the prevalence of RAO in the general horse population of Great Britain and to investigate possible risk factors for RAO associated with management or early life. Methods: Horse owners were surveyed using a self-administered postal questionnaire that contained a risk-screening questionnaire (RSQ) designed to identify horses with RAO. These owners were ...
Bażanów B, Jansen van Vuren P, Szymański P, Stygar D, Frącka A, Twardoń J, Kozdrowski R, Pawęska JT.West Nile virus (WNV) and Usutu virus (USUV) are members of the family Flaviviridae which, natural life cycles involve mosquito-bird-mosquito transmission. Both represent emerging viruses in Europe with potential to cause neuroinvasive disease in humans. This study investigates the seroprevalence of serum neutralizing antibodies to WNV and to USUV in birds and in horses in Poland. Antibodies against WNV and USUV were detected in 5 (35.7%) and in 1 (7.14%) of 14 birds and in 62 (15.08%) and in 115 (27.98%) of 411 horses, respectively. Twenty-one WNV serologically positive horses (33.87%) and 67...
Thatcher CD, Pleasant RS, Geor RJ, Elvinger F.The prevalence of obesity in horses in the eastern United States is not well documented. Objective: To determine body condition and risk factors for obesity in horses in Southwest Virginia during summer. Methods: A sample of 300 mature (4-20 years old), light breed horses (140 mares, 151 geldings, and 9 stallions) from the VMRCVM Equine Field Service practice equine database. The horses were from 114 farms and 138 owners. Methods: Horses were evaluated over a 60-day period in this cross-sectional, prospective study. A questionnaire was completed for each horse. Body condition score (BCS) was a...
Fazio E, Ferlazzo A.Domestic animals are transported for a variety of reasons including breeding, biomedical purposes, slaughter and, in the case of sporting horses, for competitions, pleasure activities or ceremonial proceedings. Studies to determine the amount of stress on farm animals during transport often have highly variable results and are difficult to interpret. The reaction of animals to stressors depends on the duration and intensity of the stressors, the animal's previous experience, its physiological status and the immediate environmental restraints. Behavioural, haematological, haematochemical, physi...
Bruno L, Nappo MA, Ferrari L, Di Lecce R, Guarnieri C, Cantoni AM, Corradi A.Nipah virus (NiV) infection is a viral disease caused by a Henipavirus, belonging to the Paramyxoviridae family, responsible for a zoonosis. The course of the disease can be very serious and lead to death. NiV natural hosts are fruit bats (also known as megabats) belonging to the Pteropodidae family, especially those of the genus. Natural infection in domestic animals has been described in farming pigs, horses, domestic and feral dogs and cats. Natural NiV transmission is possible intra-species (pig-to-pig, human-to-human) and inter-species (flying bat-to-human, pig-to-human, horse-to-human)....
Hannaman D, Dupuy LC, Ellefsen B, Schmaljohn CS.Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV), a mosquito-borne alphavirus, causes periodic epizootics in equines and is a recognized biological defense threat for humans. There are currently no FDA-licensed vaccines against VEEV. We developed a candidate DNA vaccine expressing the E3-E2-6K-E1 genes of VEEV (pWRG/VEE) and performed a Phase 1 clinical study to assess the vaccine's safety, reactogenicity, tolerability, and immunogenicity when administered by intramuscular (IM) or intradermal (ID) electroporation (EP) using the Ichor Medical Systems TriGrid™ Delivery System. Subjects in IM-EP gro...
Kulkarni MA, Berrang-Ford L, Buck PA, Drebot MA, Lindsay LR, Ogden NH.In Canada, the emergence of vector-borne diseases may occur via international movement and subsequent establishment of vectors and pathogens, or via northward spread from endemic areas in the USA. Re-emergence of endemic vector-borne diseases may occur due to climate-driven changes to their geographic range and ecology. Lyme disease, West Nile virus (WNV), and other vector-borne diseases were identified as priority emerging non-enteric zoonoses in Canada in a prioritization exercise conducted by public health stakeholders in 2013. We review and present the state of knowledge on the public heal...
van der Weyden L, Brenn T, Patton EE, Wood GA, Adams DJ.In contrast to other cancer types, melanoma incidence has been increasing over the last 50 years, and while it still represents less than 5% of all cutaneous malignancies, melanoma accounts for the majority of skin cancer deaths, due to its propensity to metastasise. Whilst melanoma most commonly affects the skin, it can also arise in mucosal surfaces, the eye, and the brain. For new therapies to be developed, a better understanding of the genetic landscape, signalling pathways, and tumour-microenvironmental interactions is needed. This is where animal models are of critical importance. The ...
Marsh GA, Haining J, Hancock TJ, Robinson R, Foord AJ, Barr JA, Riddell S, Heine HG, White JR, Crameri G, Field HE, Wang LF, Middleton D.Hendra virus (HeV) is a highly pathogenic zoonotic paramyxovirus harbored by Australian flying foxes with sporadic spillovers directly to horses. Although the mode and critical control points of HeV spillover to horses from flying foxes, and the risk for transmission from infected horses to other horses and humans, are poorly understood, we successfully established systemic HeV disease in 3 horses exposed to Hendra virus/Australia/Horse/2008/Redlands by the oronasal route, a plausible route for natural infection. In 2 of the 3 animals, HeV RNA was detected continually in nasal swabs from as ea...
King S, Rajko-Nenow P, Ashby M, Frost L, Carpenter S, Batten C.African horse sickness was confirmed in horses in Thailand during March 2020. The virus was determined to belong to serotype 1 and is phylogenetically closely related to isolates from South Africa. This is the first incidence of African horse sickness occurring in South East Asia and of serotype 1 outside of Africa.
Golomidova A, Kulikov E, Isaeva A, Manykin A, Letarov A.The diversity of coliphages and indigenous coliform strains (ICSs) simultaneously present in horse feces was investigated by culture-based and molecular methods. The richness of coliforms (as estimated by the Chao1 method) is about 1,000 individual ICSs distinguishable by genomic fingerprinting present in a single sample of feces. This unexpectedly high value indicates that some factor limits the competition of coliform bacteria in the horse gut microbial system. In contrast, the diversity of phages active against any selected ICS is generally limited to one to three viral genotypes present in...
Ostlund EN, Crom RL, Pedersen DD, Johnson DJ, Williams WO, Schmitt BJ.After the 1999 outbreak of West Nile (WN) encephalitis in New York horses, a case definition was developed that specified the clinical signs, coupled with laboratory test results, required to classify cases of WN encephalitis in equines as either probable or confirmed. In 2000, 60 horses from seven states met the criteria for a confirmed case. The cumulative experience from clinical observations and diagnostic testing during the 1999 and 2000 outbreaks of WN encephalitis in horses will contribute to further refinement of diagnostic criteria.
