An outbreak of suspected equine infectious anaemia in Guyana.

This research identifies an outbreak of equine infectious anaemia (EIA), a contagious equine disease, among horses in the Rupununi Savannahs of Guyana and provides a thorough analysis of the disease’s impact.

Overview of the EIA Outbreak

• An outbreak of Equine Infectious Anemia (EIA) was suspected amongst a population of 678 horses across 16 farms in the Rupununi Savannahs, Guyana. EIA is a viral disease that causes fever, anemia, jaundice, hemorrhages, and can lead to death in horses.
• Clinical signs of EIA were detected in 110 of the 678 horses. These could include symptoms such as fever, depression, weight loss, swelling, and anemia.

Test Results and Diagnosis

• A diagnostic tool known as Agar Gel Immunodiffusion (AGID) test was carried out on the sera from 92 horses, of which 67 (or 72.8%) tested positive for EIA. The AGID test is a common diagnostic method used for detecting antibodies of the EIA virus in a horse’s blood.
• The study also found that the mean packed cell volume (a measure of the proportion of blood made up of red blood cells) of 50 horses studied was 0.178, indicating likely anemia in these horses. The average red blood cell count and white blood cell count were also reported, which are important indicators of a horse’s overall health and presence of infection.

Impacts of the EIA Outbreak

• The research revealed a morbidity rate (the proportion of horses that became ill) of 14.0% and a mortality rate (the proportion of horses that died) of 11.1% due to the disease.
• The majority of horses that tested positive for the disease were between the ages of four and nine years, pointing towards a possible vulnerability of this age group to the disease.