Retrospective study of 108 foals with septic osteomyelitis

Objective   To determine the clinical characteristics, short-term outcome and future athletic performance of foals with septic osteomyelitis.
Design   Retrospective clinical study of 108 Thoroughbred foals with radiographic evidence of bone infection that were presented at the Scone Veterinary Hospital between August 1995 and December 2001. Medical records were reviewed and information concerning signalment, the clinical, laboratory and radiographic findings, treatment and outcome was obtained. Racing records were obtained and evaluated for surviving foals that had reached racing age.
Results   Mean age of foals at initial evaluation was 39 days (range 1–180 days); 21 foals had multiple radiographic bone lesions (19.4%), and 76 had concurrent septic arthritis (70.4%). The most frequently affected bones were the femur, tibia and distal phalanx. In total, 87 foals were discharged from the hospital (80.6%), 79 survived long-term to reach racing age and 52 raced (65.8%). Overall, 48% (52/108) of the foals treated for osteomyelitis raced. Foals less than 30 days of age at the time of diagnosis, critically ill foals and those with multiple bones or joints affected were significantly less likely to be discharged from hospital. Multiple septic joints, but not multiple bone involvement, had an unfavourable prognosis for racing.
Conclusions   The prognosis for survival of foals with septic osteomyelitis or osteitis is favourable. Multiple bone or joint involvement is an important short-term prognostic indicator; however, the involvement of multiple joints, but not multiple infected bones, is associated with an unfavourable prognosis for racing.     

Epizootics of sudden death in tammar wallabies (Macropus eugenii) associated with an orbivirus infection

Epizootics of sudden death in tammar wallabies (Macropus eugenii) occurred at six research facilities and zoological gardens in New South Wales, Australia, in late 1998 and at one Queensland research facility in March 1999. There were 120 confirmed tammar wallaby deaths during this period; however, population censuses indicated that up to 230 tammar wallabies may have died. The majority of animals died without premonitory signs. A small proportion of wallabies exhibited increased respiratory rate, sat with a lowered head shortly before death or were discovered in lateral recumbency, moribund and with muscle fasciculations. Gross postmortem findings consistently included massive pulmonary congestion, mottled hepatic parenchyma and subcutaneous oedema throughout the hindlimbs and inguinal region. Approximately 30% of the animals examined also had extensive haemorrhage within the fascial planes and skeletal muscle of the hindlimb adductors, inguinal region, ventral thorax, dorsal cervical region and perirenal retroperitoneal area. The tissues of affected animals became autolytic within a short period after death. Bacteriological examination of tissues from 14 animals did not provide any significant findings. Toxicological examination of the gastric and colonic contents of four animals did not reveal evidence of brodifacoume or other rodenticides. Viruses from the Eubenangee serogroup of the Orbivirus genus were isolated from the cerebral cortex of nine, and the myocardium of two, tammar wallabies and the liver and intestine of another tammar wallaby. A similar orbivirus was also isolated from the cerebrospinal fluid of another tammar wallaby that died suddenly. The disease agent appears to be a previously unrecognised orbivirus in the Eubenangee serogroup. This is the first report of epizootics of sudden deaths in tammar wallabies apparently associated with an orbivirus infection.     

Genetic screening of FecB,FecXG and FecXI mutations and their linkage with litter size in Barki and Rahmani sheep breeds

Characterization of fecundity genes offers the opportunity to improve production efficiency, and the consequent increase in litter size in livestock industry, through utilizing them in breeding programs. The main objective of this study was to detect the BMPR‐IB, BMP15 and GDF9 gene mutations and to investigate whether these mutations are associated with litter size in Egyptian sheep breeds. To achieve this goal, 73 adult ewes representing Barki (n = 33) and Rahmani (n = 40) breeds were used. Polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR‐RFLP) screening approach was used to detect the presence of FecB, FecX^G and FecX^I mutations in the two selected breeds. Results of this study showed that the three different candidate gene mutations, namely FecB, FecX^G and FecX^I are not present among these selected populations of the Egyptian breeds. Further studies regarding other mutations and/or other genes, which may influence ovulation rate, should be carried out to determine the type and mode of inheritance of such genes in Egyptian sheep breeds.     

Repeat Ovum Pick-up and In Vitro Embryo Production from Adult Ewes with and without FSH Treatment

Ovum pick-up (OPU) was performed three times on adult ewes after synchronization with (n = 4) or without (n = 4) FSH treatment to investigate the effects of FSH treatment on the number of ovarian follicles, oocytes recovered, oocyte quality and development in vitro. FSH treatment increased the number of ovarian follicles (85 vs 162) and oocytes recovered (33 vs 91), although recovery rate was similar for ewes with and without FSH (91/162, 56.2% and 33/85, 38.8% respectively). Of the oocytes recovered, those classified as grades I and II were similar between ewes with (78/91, 85.7%) and without FSH treatment (27/33, 81.8%). The number of ovarian follicles was similar after repeated OPU for ewes treated with FSH, but for ewes not treated with FSH the number of ovarian follicles decreased with repeated OPU. The number of oocytes recovered decreased for FSH-treated ewes only, while the oocyte recovery rate and proportion of oocytes classified as grades I and II were not affected by repeated OPU. Oocyte cleavage (46/78, 58.9% and 19/24, 79.2%) and blastocyst formation (35/46, 76.1% and 12/19, 63.2% respectively) were similar for ewes with and without FSH treatment. The number of ovarian follicles varied between ewes (p < 0.05) although the number of oocytes recovered and oocyte development in vitro were similar between ewes.     

Cadmium induced alterations in the intestinal absorption of glucose and fructose in a freshwater cat fish,Heteropneustes fossilis

The effect of four concentrations (1.0, 0.1, 0.01, and 0.001 mM) of Cd on the rate of absorption of two sugars, glucose and fructose by the intestine of the fresh water cat fish, Heteropneustes fossilis has been studied after 1 h at 23 °C. Intestinal glucose and fructose transport was also assessed in fish exposed to a sublettral concentration (0.0023 mM) of Cd in the ambient water for 15 and 30 days. Control fish showed no marked difference in the rates of absorption of glucose and fructose. All four concentrations of Cd decreased the rate of transport of glucose and fructose significantly. Among the two sugars, decrease in the rate of transport of fructose was more marked than glucose. In fish exposed to Cd in the ambient water, reduction of glucose and fructose absorption was greater after 30 days of exposure than after 15 days.     

Rib osteomyelitis in three foals

Three foals aged between 21 and 44 days were presented for evaluation of pyrexia and lameness. Each had subcutaneous abscessation associated with osteomyelitis of a rib at the costochondral junction and pathological fracture of the affected rib; one foal had more than one rib affected. Other localised sites of infection included other sites of osteomyelitis, omphalophlebitis, uveitis, enterocolitis, and calcaneal bursitis. The subcutaneous abscessation and rib osteomyelitis was treated surgically in two foals. Salmonella typhimurium was isolated from the subcutaneous abscess in one foal and from the faeces of another. Two of the three foals were euthanased. Ultrasonography was a more useful modality than radiography for establishing the diagnosis of costal osteomyelitis.     

Wounds of the pastern and foot region managed with phalangeal casts: 50 cases in 49 horses (1995–2006)

Objective   Describe the use of a phalangeal cast as treatment for wounds in the pastern and foot region of horses. Secondly, to evaluate the healing and soundness of horses treated with phalangeal casts.
Design   Retrospective study of 49 horses.
Procedures   Medical records of 49 horses that were treated with a phalangeal cast for 50 cases of wounds in the pastern and foot region at equine referral hospitals from 1995 to 2006 were reviewed and follow-up information was obtained.
Results   Treatment consisted of wound debridement, lavage, wound closure (28 wounds), cast application and antibiotics (84%). At follow-up, the majority of horses were sound (42 of 47 wounds, 89.4%), three horses were still lame and one horse was euthanased because of persistent lameness. Three horses were lost to follow-up. There was no statistical difference between the outcomes of horses treated acutely (<24 h) or after a 24-h delay. Similarly, the involvement of synovial structures in the wound did not significantly influence outcome.
Conclusions   In this study, wounds involving the pastern and foot that were treated with a phalangeal cast carried a good prognosis for soundness (89.4%) and cosmetic healing (89.5%). The phalangeal casts were well-tolerated and effective.     

Serological survey of pre-weaned New Zealand fur seals (Arctocephalus forsteri) for brucellosis and leptospirosis

AIM: To conduct a longitudinal serological survey for evidence of Brucella spp and Leptospira spp infection of pre-weaned New Zealand fur seals in a colony on the Otago Peninsula.

METHODS: Seal pups were repeatedly captured on a monthly basis from February through to July 2001. Pups were tagged at first capture and a blood sample was taken at each capture event. A total of 163 sera were collected from 118 seal pups. Where sufficient volume was collected, the sera were tested for leptospirosis using the microscopic agglutination test (MAT), and for brucellosis using the competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for Brucella abortus.

RESULTS: None of 128 sera from 101 seals tested positive to the ELISA for B. abortus. All tests for Leptospira interrogans serovars Grippotyphosa, Copenhageni, Bratislava and Leptospira borgpetersenii serovar Ballum were negative at a cut-off of <1/100 dilution. Positive or suspicious titres were found to L. interrogans serovars Canicola and Pomona and L. borgpetersenii serovar Hardjo. The highest titres (12,800) were found to serovar Pomona. The titre to serovar Pomona in one seal rose from <1/50 in March to 12,800 in April and was <1/50 when re-sampled in July. The titre to serovar Pomona in another seal dropped from 12,800 in May to <1/50 in June. These seals also had titres to serovar Hardjo, which rose or fell in the same manner. All suspicious or positive titres occurred in late April and early May, when the pups were approximately 4–5 months old. In June and July, all seals tested were negative.

CONCLUSIONS: There was no serological evidence of Brucella infection in the pre-weaned fur seals at the colony. Positive titres to serovars Pomona, Hardjo, or Canicola suggest that a Leptospira species was present at the colony, however isolation or visualisation of the organism is required to confirm this. Care should be exercised when handling New Zealand fur seals to prevent human infection or inadvertent transfer of leptospirosis to another marine mammal species.