Volume 27, Issue 11 , Pages 471-474, November 2007
What's News
Article Outline
- Biosecurity: A Focus on the Triad of Disease with Josie Traub-Dargatz, DVM, MS, DACVIM
- Additional Information on SeM-Specific Titer Levels, Elisa Testing, and Vaccination with John Timoney, MVB, MRCVS, MS, PhD
- Nat White Selected as 2008 AAEP Vice President
- Short Courses to be Held at Colorado State University
- Equine Research Coordination Group White Paper: Equine Colic Research: Future Prospects for an Age-Old Problem
Biosecurity: A Focus on the Triad of Disease with Josie Traub-Dargatz, DVM, MS, DACVIM
In a recent interview, Dr. Josie Traub-Dargatz provided an in-depth look at biosecurity as it pertains to equine facility management. She emphasized the importance of creating a biosecurity plan that can be maintained—that is feasible in terms of time, materials, and facilities. Below is a list of important considerations.
Biosecurity: Prevention and Plan of Action
Reprinted from: IDEXX Equine Edge Newsletter – Summer 2007 http://www.idexx.com/equine/equineedge/2006fall.jsp
Courtesy of IDEXX Laboratories. Copyright © 2007, IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Additional Information on SeM-Specific Titer Levels, Elisa Testing, and Vaccination with John Timoney, MVB, MRCVS, MS, PhD
In a recent interview, Dr. John Timoney provided additional information on the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) consensus statement, “Streptococcus equi Infections in Horses: Guidelines for Treatment, Control, and Prevention of Strangles.”
Below are some points for consideration.
Interpretation of SeM-Specific Titer Levels and Cutoff for Vaccination
Horses make very individual antibody responses—there is no absolute rule to determine a titer cutoff for vaccination or those at greater risk for developing purpura hemorrhagica. Many believe that an antibody titer greater than 1:1,600 indicates adequate protective response. Also, vaccination is contraindicated in horses with preexisting high levels of antibody (>1:1,600). The information that is currently available will continue to evolve because of the number of samples that are being collected and examined. As we continue to learn more about titer levels, more specific cutoffs can be determined.
Use of SeM-Specific ELISA Test before Vaccination
As with many vaccinations, controversy surrounds the use of S. equi vaccines. Performing a risk–benefit analysis to determine when testing and vaccination are indicated may be helpful. Testing using the SeM-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to determine titer levels aids in identifying horses with existing high levels of antibodies that may predispose them to developing purpura hemorrhagica and to determine the need for vaccination/booster.
The ELISA is useful for:
The ELISA test also aids in:
Considerations for Vaccination
When you vaccinate a horse you are looking for an antibody response; not all horses will respond equally.
Complications Caused by Vaccination
Horses that develop purpura are known as hyperresponders. Purpura involves the formation of antibody and antigen immune complexes. Although purpura is rare, occurring in approximately 1% of horses with strangles, it can be life threatening. In herds in which strangles outbreaks have occurred there may be a risk for hyperresponders. Also, siblings of horses that have developed purpura are at greater risk for developing such complications.
Research and New Information
As more horses are tested and vaccinated, more information is gathered specific to titer levels, immunity, vaccinations, and testing. Constant research is being done and new advancements are on the horizon.
Reference
1. Sweeney CR, Timoney JF, Newton JR, Hines MT. Streptococcus equi infections in horses: guidelines for treatment, control, and prevention of strangles. J Vet Intern Med 2005;19:123–134.
Reprinted from: IDEXX Equine Edge Newsletter – Summer 2007 http://www.idexx.com/equine/equineedge/2006fall.jsp
Courtesy of IDEXX Laboratories. Copyright © 2007, IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Nat White Selected as 2008 AAEP Vice President
Nathaniel A. White II, DVM, of Leesburg, Virginia, has been selected as the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP)'s next vice president. Dr. White will ascend to the AAEP presidency in 2010.
A board-certified surgeon and renowned researcher, Dr. White is the Jean Ellen Shehan Professor and director of the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center at the Virginia–Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. He received his doctor of veterinary medicine (DVM) at Cornell University in 1971. After completing an internship and residency in surgery at the University of California–Davis, he spent a year in practice before graduating with a master of science in pathology degree from Kansas State University in 1976. Dr. White has served on the faculty of Kansas State University, the University of Georgia, and Virginia Tech. He was the Theodora Ayer Randolph Professor of Surgery as an eminent scholar at Virginia Tech from 1987 to 2003. Dr. White also is an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland.
Dr. White has a long history of active involvement in the AAEP. He is currently the chair of the AAEP Foundation Advisory Committee and he is a past chair of the Student Relations Committee and a former member of the board of directors. Dr. White organized the Equine Research Summit in 2006 as part of the AAEP's effort to highlight the need for equine research. He was recognized for his contributions to the AAEP and the profession in 2004 when he received the AAEP Distinguished Service Award.
Dr. White has authored or co-authored 148 journal articles and 35 book chapters, has published 40 abstracts, and is the editor and author of The Equine Acute Abdomen, Current Practice of Surgery, Current Techniques in Equine Surgery and Lameness, and the Handbook of Equine Colic. His clinical and research interests include pathophysiology of ischemia–reperfusion, epidemiology of colic, abdominal and orthopedic surgery, and treatment of orthopedic diseases.
Other honors received by Dr. White include the Pfizer Animal Health Award for Research Excellence in 1999 and the 2005 Distinguished Virginia Veterinarian Award from the Virginia Veterinary Medical Association. Dr. White was one of the founders of the Bolshoi Colic Research Program at the University of Georgia, and he helped start and continues to help organize the Equine Colic Research Symposium with the 8th Symposium to be held in Liverpool in the United Kingdom in 2008.
Dr. White's service on the AAEP Executive Committee will begin at the association's 53rd Annual Convention in Orlando, Florida, December 1–5, 2007.
The American Association of Equine Practitioners, headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky, was founded in 1954 as a nonprofit organization dedicated to the health and welfare of the horse. Currently, the AAEP reaches more than 5 million horse owners through its nearly 9,000 members worldwide and is actively involved in ethics issues, practice management, research, and continuing education in the equine veterinary profession and horse industry.
Short Courses to be Held at Colorado State University
Basic Arthroscopy
Presented by Dr. Wayne McIlwraith. Course teaches the principles of equine arthroscopy including instrumentation and basic techniques, diagnostic arthroscopy of the carpus and fetlock joints, arthroscopic surgery of the carpus for osteochondral chip fragment removal, and arthroscopic surgery of the dorsal compartment of the fetlock joint for proximal P1 chips, villonodular synovitis, and osteochondritis dissecans (OCD). The morning program will consist of lectures and video demonstration. The afternoon will be a laboratory with participants performing arthroscopic surgery using video under supervision of the instructors.
Date: November 15, 2007
Credit: 8 hours
Instructors: Dr. Wayne McIlwraith, Dr. Gary Baxter, Dr. David Frisbie, Dr. Laurie Goodrich, Dr. Chris Kawcak
Residents will receive a discounted fee. ENROLLMENT IS LIMITED!
For specific information, please contact Tiffany Banfield at 970-297-1273 or visit our CE webpage at www.cvmbs.colostate.edu/clinsci/ce
Advanced Arthroscopy
Presented by Dr. Wayne McIlwraith. This course will provide detailed instruction on arthroscopic techniques at the advanced level. Material presented and performed in the laboratory will include advanced arthroscopic surgery of the carpus, including internal fixation of the carpal slab fractures, arthroscopy of the palmar pouches for fragmentation of the carpal canal, tendoscopy of osteochondroma removal, arthroscopic surgery of the palmar (plantar) pouch of the fetlock joint, abaxial and basilar sesamoid fragment removal, and repair of distal metacarpal and condylar fractures under arthroscopic guidance.
Dates: November 16–17, 2007
Credit: 16 hours
Instructors: Dr. Wayne McIlwraith, Dr. Gary Baxter, Dr. David Frisbie, Dr. Laurie Goodrich, Dr. Chris Kawcak
Guest Speakers: Drs. Alan Nixon and Dean Richardson
Residents will receive a discounted fee. ENROLLMENT IS LIMITED!
For specific information, please contact Tiffany Banfield at 970-297-1273 or visit our CE webpage at www.cvmbs.colostate.edu/clinsci/ce
Equine Research Coordination Group White Paper: Equine Colic Research: Future Prospects for an Age-Old Problem
by: Anthony Blikslager, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVS
On Behalf of the Equine Research Coordination Group
Colic continues to be a serious health concern for horse owners and the equine industry. Studies indicate that approximately 10% of the horse population will suffer an episode of colic each year and that approximately 0.7% will die of colic. Based on the American Horse Council's estimated population of 9.2 million horses in the United States, approximately 920,000 cases of colic occur each year, and more than 64,000 horses may die of colic-related problems.
Colic not only causes horse owners heartache, but it creates a major economic loss to the horse industry. Given the American Horse Council's estimation that the horse industry generates $102 billion toward the U.S. gross domestic product each year, the annual monetary loss from colic would exceed $700 million.
Colic cases are categorized as either (1) surgical or (2) medical. The leading cause of colic-associated deaths is intestinal strangulation, which causes death of the intestine and absorption of toxins that lead to fatal shock. Fortunately, most horses that suffer from colic do not require surgery, with most being treated successfully with medical care. Although medically treated cases of colic have a very low mortality rate, they represent the greatest burden of this disease syndrome. Colic of any origin is of great concern to owners and results not only in suffering for the horse, but also in costs associated with loss of use and need for veterinary care.
To decrease the incidence of colic and save the lives of horses requiring surgery, horses and groups of horses will need to be critically examined and research completed to find the reason for the various intestinal disorders that cause colic. This will require new knowledge about nutrition, pasture management, and stabling. In recent years, researchers have determined that high-concentrate diets, changes in diet, increased stabling time, and other management practices can increase the risk of colic. These factors do not, however, explain all cases of colic. Further research is needed to elucidate management practices and other characteristics that increase the risk for colic. Once identified, clinical studies are needed to determine the effects of altering specific management practices. This will require large-scale studies, possibly involving horses from several countries, to identify management techniques and other factors associated with colic. The costs of this type of research principally involve personnel required to collect, enter, and analyze data, rather than the purchase of supplies and equipment. Following horses during such studies requires a dedicated, competent team and significant financial backing to complete the needed research.
Increasing survival in horses that have life-threatening types of colic involves four approaches: (1) early referral, (2) curtailing intestinal injury, (3) hastening intestinal repair, and (4) reducing the development of complications. Early referral continues to be one of the most important ways to decrease the mortality associated with serious diseases. Investigations are needed to identify clinical or laboratory signs indicative of disease severity that can be used to improve the veterinarian's ability to make an early referral for horses requiring intensive care and possibly surgery.
Preventing further injury of the obstructed or strangulated intestine requires a better understanding of ways to resuscitate the affected tissue when its blood supply has been restored. Similar to the damage that occurs to the heart muscle in humans after blood flow has been restored after a heart attack, restoration of intestinal blood flow, known as reperfusion, also causes intestinal injury beyond what occurred during the strangulation.
Studies are needed to determine whether the mechanisms responsible for reperfusion injury in laboratory and small animal species are the same in horses, and to identify new treatments to reduce the degree of damage occurring in the strangulated intestine. This approach will require considerable resources to study the basic mechanisms of cell death and survival in the equine intestine, followed by clinical trials to test novel treatments capable of interfering with these mechanisms.
Research to identify treatments that can optimize intestinal healing while decreasing inflammation is needed to help improve survival in horses after surgery. Although nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are used to ameliorate signs of endotoxin-induced shock and the pain of colic, they also block production of prostaglandins, which are important for normal physiology and healing. As a result, many of the NSAIDs can impair intestinal healing after surgery. Research is needed to identify NSAIDs or other drugs that can control pain and shock while maintaining the normal physiologic processes in horses with colic.
Studies also are needed to improve our ability to prevent the development of complications that occur all too often in horses with gastrointestinal diseases causing colic. Some of these complications include postoperative ileus (absence of normal intestinal movement), the development of intestinal adhesions, intravascular clots, and laminitis. Only by addressing gaps in our knowledge about the development of these complications can improvements be made in the quality of a horse's life after colic.
Teams of equine researchers with expertise in epidemiology, clinical trials, and basic science are needed to make progress in each of these areas. Within the United States and United Kingdom, these individuals are available and many currently work together in collaborative studies. The critical component missing is adequate funding for colic research. Considering the huge cost of colic to horse owners and the equine industry, the cost to complete research studies is relatively small. Therefore, now is the time to invest in research on a problem that is of critical importance to the horse.
The Morris Animal Foundation (www.morrisanimalfoundation.org), American Quarter Horse Foundation (www.aqha.com/foundation), Grayson Jockey-Club Research Foundation (www.grayson-jockeyclub.org), and the American Association of Equine Practitioners Foundation, Inc., all support work in this area. Alternatively, contact your favorite veterinary school to support colic research.
Please contact the AAEP Foundation (www.aaepfoundation.org) for information about how to make donations for equine research, or call 1-800-443-0177 (within the United States) or 859-233-0147. This is just one of many efforts that the AAEP is coordinating on behalf of the industry through the Equine Research Coordination Group (ERCG), which comprises researchers and organizations that support equine research. ERCG was formally organized last year with a mission of advancing the health and welfare of horses by promoting the discovery and sharing of new knowledge, enhancing awareness of the need for targeted research, educating the public, expanding fundraising opportunities, and facilitating cooperation among funding agencies.
The ERCG is a group composed of researchers and organizations that support equine research. Participants in the ERCG include equine foundations and multiple university research representatives. Current participants include: AAEP Foundation, American Horse Council, AQHA Foundation, Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center, Morris Animal Foundation, Havemeyer Foundation, United States Equestrian Federation Foundation and University Researchers, including: Noah Cohen, VMD, PhD (Texas A & M University), Greg Ferraro, DVM (University of California - Davis), Eleanor Green, DVM (University of Florida), Dick Mansmann, VMD, PhD (North Carolina State University), Wayne McIlwraith, BVSc, PhD (Colorado State University), Jim Moore, DVM (University of Georgia), Rustin Moore, DVM, PhD (The Ohio State University), and Dr. Nat White DVM (Virginia Tech). For more information about the ERCG, please visit online at http://www.aaepfoundation.org and click on the ERCG link.
PII: S0737-0806(07)00339-5
doi:10.1016/j.jevs.2007.10.001
Volume 27, Issue 11 , Pages 471-474, November 2007