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Home / Equine Research Bank / Viruses / New Insights into the Management of an EHV-1 (Equine Hospita...
Viruses2021; 13(8); doi: 10.3390/v13081429

New Insights into the Management of an EHV-1 (Equine Hospital) Outbreak.

Abstract: In May 2018, Wolvega Equine Hospital (WEH) experienced an EHV-1 outbreak. This outbreak caused significant economic losses and negative publicity for the hospital. How should hospitals prepare themselves for these outbreaks and prevent shedding of the virus on multiple neighboring premises? The hospital transformed most of its activities into mobile practice and the entire infected hospital population was moved to a separate remote location. The hospital was cleaned and disinfected according to the latest recommendations before reopening. Four neighboring professional equine businesses and three privately owned premises were affected by the spread of the virus from the hospital population and initiated quarantine restrictions. Equine hospitals should prepare themselves for EHV-1 outbreaks as the intake of the virus cannot be prevented. A management protocol should include public information protocols, swift client information and quarantine measures that ensure quick containment of the outbreak. Timely reopening of the hospital can be achieved by rehousing the contaminated population. It should also include good regulations with clients and a properly carried out release protocol. Equine sports organizations should establish sufficient vaccination coverage in order to decrease the frequency of EHV-1 outbreaks.
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Publication Date: 2021-07-22 PubMed ID: 34452295PubMed Central: PMC8402800DOI: 10.3390/v13081429Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

Summary

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This research article examines a 2018 outbreak of the EHV-1 virus at the Wolvega Equine Hospital (WEH) and suggests protocols for managing future outbreaks, including communication strategies, quarantine measures, disinfection procedures, and vaccination coverage.

Background

  • The Wolvega Equine Hospital (WEH) suffered an outbreak of equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) in May 2018, which led to considerable financial losses and negatively affected its public image.
  • An EHV-1 outbreak is dangerous for equine facilities as it is highly contagious and can cause serious health issues in horses, including respiratory disease and abortion.

Outbreak Management

  • After the outbreak was detected, the hospital shifted most of its functions to a mobile service and transferred the entire infected population to an isolated location.
  • Following current best practices, the hospital was extensively cleaned and disinfected before it was reopened.

Spread to Neighbouring Equine Premises

  • Despite these measures, the virus spread to four professional equine businesses and three privately-owned locations in the vicinity of WEH, which led these premises to impose quarantine restrictions.

Recommended Response to Outbreaks

  • Given that the intake of EHV-1 cannot be completely prevented, the paper recommends that equine hospitals should have protocols in place to manage future outbreaks.
  • These protocols should involve informing the public swiftly, implementing quarantine measures for quick containment, and plans for rapid hospital reopening by relocating the infected horsed.
  • The authors also stress the importance of well-executed clearance procedures and maintaining clear communication with clients, to help mitigate the impact of an outbreak.

Role of Sports Organizations

  • The papers also calls for equine sports organizations to ensure sufficient vaccination coverage among their members in order to reduce the frequency and severity of EHV-1 outbreaks.

Cite This Article

APA
Vandenberghe E, Boshuizen B, Delesalle CJG, Goehring LS, Groome KA, van Maanen K, de Bruijn CM. (2021). New Insights into the Management of an EHV-1 (Equine Hospital) Outbreak. Viruses, 13(8). https://doi.org/10.3390/v13081429

Publication

Viruses
ISSN: 1999-4915
NlmUniqueID: 101509722
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 13
Issue: 8

Researcher Affiliations

Vandenberghe, Eveline
  • Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, 4250 Iron Works Pike, Lexington, KY 40511, USA.
Boshuizen, Berit
  • Wolvega Equine Hospital, Stellingenweg 10, 8474EA Oldeholtpade, The Netherlands.
  • Research Group of Comparative Physiology, Department of Virology, Parasitology and Immunology, Faculty Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
Delesalle, Catherine J G
  • Research Group of Comparative Physiology, Department of Virology, Parasitology and Immunology, Faculty Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
Goehring, Lutz S
  • Equine Hospital, Center for Clinical Veterinary Medicine, Division of Medicine and Reproduction, LudwigMaximilians University, 80539 Munich, Germany.
Groome, Katy A
  • The Royal Veterinary College, Royal College Street, London NW1 0TU, UK.
van Maanen, Kees
  • GD Animal Health, Department of Small Ruminants, Horses and Companion Animals, Arnsbergstraat 7, 7418EZ Deventer, The Netherlands.
de Bruijn, Cornelis M
  • Wolvega Equine Hospital, Stellingenweg 10, 8474EA Oldeholtpade, The Netherlands.

MeSH Terms

  • Animals
  • Communicable Disease Control
  • Cross Infection / prevention & control
  • Cross Infection / therapy
  • Cross Infection / veterinary
  • Disease Outbreaks / veterinary
  • Female
  • Herpesviridae Infections / epidemiology
  • Herpesviridae Infections / prevention & control
  • Herpesviridae Infections / therapy
  • Herpesviridae Infections / veterinary
  • Herpesvirus 1, Equid
  • Horse Diseases / epidemiology
  • Horse Diseases / prevention & control
  • Horse Diseases / therapy
  • Horses
  • Hospitals, Animal
  • Male
  • Netherlands / epidemiology
  • Quarantine

Conflict of Interest Statement

Authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Citations

This article has been cited 13 times.
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