Equine piroplasmosis – the view of a practitioner from an endemic region.

The research article explores Equine Piroplasmosis (EP), a tick-borne disease prevalent in certain regions worldwide. It is endemic and causes significant economic losses while also restricting horse movement. The article further discusses EP’s cause, transmission, management, diagnosis, treatment, and the need for broader awareness among practitioners and stakeholders in endemic and non-endemic countries.

Equine Piroplasmosis (EP)

• EP is a tick-borne disease most rampant in particular global regions, including Europe, tropical or subtropical Asia, South and Central America, and Africa.
• The disease results in significant economic losses and limits the movement of horses.
• Seronegative horses are the only ones allowed to be imported to non-endemic regions like the USA, Canada, Australia, and Japan to prevent EP from spreading.

Causative Agents and Transmission

• EP is caused by two haemoprotozoan parasites of the phylum Apicomplexa: Babesia caballi (intraerythrocytic) and Theileria equi (intraerythrocytic and intralymphocytic).
• These parasites have different life cycles and are transmitted by ixodid ticks of several genera, including Rhipicephalus, Dermacentor, Haemaphysalis, Hyalomma, and Boophilus.

Management of EP

• The management approach depends on whether the practitioners operate from an endemic or disease-free area.
• In disease-free regions, early detection of carriers and instances is critical to avoid disease introduction.
• However, practitioners in endemic areas aim to determine whether observed symptoms align with clinical piroplasmosis or can be ascribed to a different disease.

Diagnosis of EP

• Although the clinical signs of both parasitic infections are similar, their treatment and prognosis differ, necessitating laboratory-based differential diagnoses.
• Practitioners often diagnose EP based on clinical and epidemiological data alone, implementing treatment regimens without performing laboratory confirmation tests. However, this might not be sufficient, pooling more emphasis on using serological or PCR tests for confirmation in cases of chronic or atypical infections.

Treatment of EP

• The treatment practices for EP differ significantly between endemic and non-endemic countries. In disease-free regions, it is critical to eliminate all parasitic infestations in horses to limit further transmission.
• Treatment often includes administering imidocarb dipropionate doses, but achieving total parasite eradication is challenging and can result in side effects like local injection site swelling, muscle inflammation, and other adverse reactions.

Conclusion and Recommendations

• There is a general lack of awareness about EP among equine practitioners in non-endemic countries. In contrast, practitioners in endemic regions tend to under-address this issue.
• To secure international horse trade, it is imperative to have reliable and timely data about EP cases’ numbers and location and clearly understand the associated economic losses.