Vertebral osteomyelitis caused by Rhodococcus equi in a three-and-half-month-old Dutch Warmblood foal

Rhodococcus equi infection occurs worldwide and is especially a problem in foals, where it often causes colitis or pneumonia. Other organs are seldom affected, and their involvement is regarded as a complication of pneumonia and/or colitis. Vertebral osteomyelitis is one such rare complication and is probably caused by haematogenous spread from inflammatory lesions in the lungs and/or intestine. In rare cases, osteomyelitis can be caused by contamination of a wound. This case study describes a foal with vertebral osteomyelitis due to R. equi in which there were only minor inflammatory changes in a mesenteric lymph node.     

Frequent deworming in horses; it usually does not do any good, but it often harms

Due to excessive and inappropriate use of dewormers anthelmintic resistance has developed as a significant problem in horse parasites in the Netherlands. Since it is unlikely that new classes of anthelmintics against horse nematodes will be introduced in the near future, it is important to use the present drugs wisely. Veterinarians should advice horse owners about worm control programs with a more targeted approach. The number of anthelmintic treatments should be reduced and, through selective anthelmintic treatments, further development of anthelmintic resistance should be delayed. Preferably, horses with a low faecal egg count should not be treated at all to ascertain a reduction of the selection pressure for anthelmintic resistance. The propensity for low faecal egg counts is hereditary. This implies that mature horses with consistent low egg counts can be detected by faecal examination and that it is not necessary to repeat faecal examination each time in these animals. New horses on the farm should always be dewormed on arrival and should be introduced only after the efficacy of treatment has been determined. Anthelmintic resistance can also be introduced with the arrival of a new animal that is infected with drug-resistant parasites.     

First case of pithomycotoxicosis (facial eczema) in the Netherlands

Between mid September and the beginning of November 2005, the Animal Health Service (AHS) received thirteen reports offarms on which several animals showed severe symptoms of solar eczema. Blood chemistry showed very high levels of GOT/AST and GGT indicative of severe liver damage. Farm visits to eight farms showed that the animals--previous to the start of the symptoms--had been grazing 24 hours/day and received no additional feed. Ingestion of poisonous plants or medications was considered unlikely to have caused the liver damage, and liver fluke infections were present on only two farms. Microscopic examination of specimens of grass revealed the presence of spores of Pithomyces chartarum in samples taken from six of nine farms. This fungus produces the mycotoxin sporidesmin, which causes severe liver damage and pithomycotoxicosis (facial eczema). This article is the first to describe Pithomyces chartarum in cattle in mainland Europe. Further research on the distribution and re-occurrence of Pithomyces chartarum infection and sporidesmin survival in grass silage is recommended.     

Renal cysts, nephrolithiasis, and ovarian cysts in a donkey suspected of having been sexually abused

A female donkey was thought by its owner to have been sexually abused because it had severe perineal swelling. Besides the perineal swelling and a very small vaginal erosion, there were no other abnormalities at clinical examination. Haematology and blood biochemistry revealed an increased leukocyte count, an elevated blood lactate concentration, and a low ionized calcium concentration. During night the donkey's condition deteriorated and it was euthanized in the morning. At necropsy severe haemorrhages were found within the subserosa of the caudal abdomen. Both kidneys were polycystic, and multiple calculi were found in the right kidney. Both ovaries had multiple cysts. Lesions (fibrosis and mineralization) were found in the liver, lungs, and mesenteric artery and were suggestive of an earlier parasitic infection. There was no evidence of sexual abuse.     

Bluetongue in The Netherlands; description of the first clinical cases and differential diagnosis. Common symptoms just a little different and in too many herds

For the first time Bluetongue (BT) has been diagnosed in the Netherlands. The clinical symptoms of BT on five farms during the first outbreak ever in the Netherlands are described. Fever and swollen sensitive coronets leading to reluctance to stand and walk were sometimes the first symptoms. Later lesions in the mouth occurred with foamy salivation and respiratory problems. In other cases a swollen head with swollen lips and foamy salivation were the first clinical signs. Also sudden death occurred. In the first sixteen confirmed cases morbidity and mortality were lower than described in outbreaks in other countries. Good collaboration between practitioners, specialists of the Animal Health Service (GD-Deventer), and specialists of the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (VWA) and CIDC-Lelystad (Wageningen UR) led to a rapid notification and ultimately confirmation of the suspected diagnosis BT.     

Prolonged elevated atmospheric CO2 does not affect decomposition of plant material

Prolonged elevated atmospheric CO₂ might alter decomposition. In a 90-day incubation study, we determined the long-term (9 years) impact of elevated CO₂ on N mineralization of Lolium perenne and Trifolium repens plant material grown at ambient and elevated CO₂ and low- and high-¹⁵N fertilizer additions. No significant differences were observed in recovery rates between any of the treatments, except an N addition effect was observed for L. perenne (0.4 versus 0.5% day⁻¹ in high versus low N). The results suggest that elevated CO₂ did not change plant N mineralization in any of the soils, because of a surplus of available N in the fertilized and leguminous systems, and because of insignificant plant responses to elevated CO₂ in the low soil N availability systems.     

Transient erythropoietic protoporphyria associated with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis in a cohort of German shepherd dogs

Over the course of one year, slight jaundice and ascites suggestive of chronic liver disease occurred in 17 German shepherd dogs from one breeding colony. Blood analyses, performed twice with a six-month interval, revealed elevated serum activities of liver enzymes in 13 dogs. In addition, four young adult German shepherd dogs that showed severe ascites, slight jaundice and increased serum liver enzyme activities were referred for further evaluation. Because of their poor prognosis these four dogs were euthanased. There were no signs of photosensitivity. Postmortem examinations revealed macronodular darkened livers, which were characterised histopathologically by cirrhosis associated with aggregates of brown pigments showing a striking orange birefringence in polarised light. Ultrastructurally, the crystalline pigments were typical of protoporphyrins. High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of liver samples revealed very high levels of protoporphyrins (mean 9550 nmol/g wet liver, reference value 0.41 nmol/g wet liver) and low activities of ferrochelatase (mean 0.274 mmol/mg protein/hour, reference value 0.684 nmol/mg protein/hour). Twenty-six months after the onset of the hepatopathies, the clinical condition of the 13 surviving dogs had improved and their serum liver enzyme activities were normal. The clinical histories and pedigree analyses were not in concordance with an inherited form of protoporphyria. There was no known history of exposure to toxic substances or drugs. The findings are in accordance with a transient erythropoietic protoporphyria associated with hepatic complications, presumably caused by exposure to a porphyrinogenic, ferrochelatase-inhibitory substance of unknown origin.