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Multimedia atlas of internal parasites of horses
International Journal for Parasitology 30 (2000) 675±676
www.elsevier.nl/locate/ijpara
CD-ROM Review Multimedia atlas of internal parasites of horses Annie K Prestwood, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, USA. Available from Gary L Carpenter, Executive Director, American Association of Equine Practitioners, 4075 Iron Works Pike, Lexington, KY 40511, USA, $USD20.00. This CD-ROM was ®rst released in 1996 and although designed for older technology, is a valuable resource for all veterinary parasitology laboratories, and departments in Colleges or Universities dealing with animal health teaching, such as agriculture, veterinary science, veterinary nursing, and is even suitable for interested ``horsey'' people. The computer requirements are modest, needing only a minimum of a 486 processor with CD (2 speed or better) an SVGA monitor (setup requires only 800 600 256 colours and Large Fonts, with 65 K colours preferred) and Windows plus a small amount of hard disk space (less than 10Mb) for setup ®les. Although simple installation instructions are provided on the CD insert and on-screen, they are not particularly intuitive. There is a need to pre-install Video for Windows Runtime (provided on the CD), and generate your own icon/shortcut. The program then runs from the CD. There is an opening screen with buttons for Search, Home, Quit, and Forward and Backward arrows. Clicking on Home brings up the Contents page with the major divisions: Protozoa, Helminths, Gastro-enteric Myiasis, Self Test, Background Information, Techniques, References, Antiparasitic Drugs, Control Programs. Within each of the main parasite groupings there is a listing of the species covered and each is then described under the following headings: General overview, classi®cation, life cycle, stage, annotated life cycle, diagnosis, and the prevention. The CD covers a wide range of parasites including those that are rare in horses. For example, there is considerable material on porcine sarcosporidoiois, Neospora, and Toxoplasma in cats and humans. One of the best features of this CD and what sets it apart from a book are the excellent video animations. The horse with Parascaris defaecating should entertain
budding junior parasitologists. The Eimeria, animated life cycle of chicken caecal coccidiosis (thrown in as an extra) is quite brilliant. The section on Antiparasitic Drugs is current up to 1995 for drugs registered by class and generic name, but lacks information on toxicity or contraindications. Not all the drugs listed are available in the USA. There is a small section on drug resistance with benzimidazoles and avermectin. It includes a disclaimer to check current manufacturers' label claims for recommended doses, levels, routes and toxicity and suggests users check with the USFDA Approved Animal Drug Database, and gives the web URL. Parasite control programs covered are based on Hoechst's Horse Owners Guide to Internal Parasites and Rupert Herd's Ten Point Plan for Pasture Management, and refute the ``Twelve Great Myths of Parasite Control''. A vast and comprehensive TEXT ONLY listing of (A) diagnostic and (B) more limited range of useful research parasitology techniques are provided. Unfortunately, there are no photographs. The headings include general information on collection of faecal samples, preservation of samples for transport to the laboratory, smears, ¯oatation methods, Baermann technique, McMaster, biopsy, blood techniques, and preservation of tissues and parasites. Under the headings of the protozoa and helminths there are speci®c diagnostic techniques for individual genera. Additional information is available for items highlighted in red. Protocols and recipes are combined in one of the most useful single sources of such information known to this reviewer. Consolidated listings of up to date texts and journal articles on each of the major categories are included. A minor de®ciency is the lack of a link (there is no ability to click on an author reference in the text to go immediately to the appropriate reference). A well-constructed multiple-choice self evaluation, useful for students and anyone to test their improved knowledge, is included. There are some weaknesses (and I have suggested some improvements which could be incorporated in subsequent versions). The CD lacks a page numbering system or ``Road Map''. An index is also needed. There is no capacity to go directly to a particular
0020-7519/00/$20.00 7 2000 Australian Society for Parasitology Inc. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 0 2 0 - 7 5 1 9 ( 0 0 ) 0 0 0 3 0 - 8
676
CD-ROM Review / International Journal for Parasitology 30 (2000) 675±676
species/page number (can use the Search facility but it is rather clumsy), and it lacks a Print capacity (even a screen print would be an improvement). Although the emphasis is on parasites of horses in North America, the widespread occurrence of most intestinal parasites makes this CD of wide appeal to all animal parasitologists. For an international audience, world distribution maps might be useful for the few equine parasites that do not have a universal distribution for example Trypanosoma evansi and T. equiperdum (which are not covered on the CD, probably the most important omission for a non-American audience). Photos have no scale bars, which may be less than helpful for the novice parasitologist or layman. Some overlays of arrows/circles on important features do not align properly if the wrong Screen Font size is chosen. Size comparisons of micro®lariae of Setaria and Onchocerca in photos are dicult to assess. The special sections of the rare cases of Kumri are interesting, but unfortunately the digitized images are not up to the
same quality as the remainder on the CD. The histological sections of Halicephalobus need arrows to distinguish the worm from host tissue. In the animations of Parascaris life cycle, it needs a comment on the hatching of eggs and on what is happening during tracheal migration. Similarly with Strongylus vulgaris, the migration of the larvae in the walls of the blood vessels should indicate whether it is the worm or a thrombus that is seen. This is a minor complaint of what is a particularly dicult cycle to explain in diagrams ± the animation is very well done. This is a ``must have'' CD for anyone interested in horses and their parasites. The author and the technical people behind this project should be very pleased with this product. Hopefully it is one of the ®rst examples of this type of medium. The textbook is not yet dead but perhaps its days are numbered! Gareth W Hutchinson PhD Consultant Veterinary Parasitologist, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
www.elsevier.nl/locate/ijpara
CD-ROM Review Multimedia atlas of internal parasites of horses Annie K Prestwood, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, USA. Available from Gary L Carpenter, Executive Director, American Association of Equine Practitioners, 4075 Iron Works Pike, Lexington, KY 40511, USA, $USD20.00. This CD-ROM was ®rst released in 1996 and although designed for older technology, is a valuable resource for all veterinary parasitology laboratories, and departments in Colleges or Universities dealing with animal health teaching, such as agriculture, veterinary science, veterinary nursing, and is even suitable for interested ``horsey'' people. The computer requirements are modest, needing only a minimum of a 486 processor with CD (2 speed or better) an SVGA monitor (setup requires only 800 600 256 colours and Large Fonts, with 65 K colours preferred) and Windows plus a small amount of hard disk space (less than 10Mb) for setup ®les. Although simple installation instructions are provided on the CD insert and on-screen, they are not particularly intuitive. There is a need to pre-install Video for Windows Runtime (provided on the CD), and generate your own icon/shortcut. The program then runs from the CD. There is an opening screen with buttons for Search, Home, Quit, and Forward and Backward arrows. Clicking on Home brings up the Contents page with the major divisions: Protozoa, Helminths, Gastro-enteric Myiasis, Self Test, Background Information, Techniques, References, Antiparasitic Drugs, Control Programs. Within each of the main parasite groupings there is a listing of the species covered and each is then described under the following headings: General overview, classi®cation, life cycle, stage, annotated life cycle, diagnosis, and the prevention. The CD covers a wide range of parasites including those that are rare in horses. For example, there is considerable material on porcine sarcosporidoiois, Neospora, and Toxoplasma in cats and humans. One of the best features of this CD and what sets it apart from a book are the excellent video animations. The horse with Parascaris defaecating should entertain
budding junior parasitologists. The Eimeria, animated life cycle of chicken caecal coccidiosis (thrown in as an extra) is quite brilliant. The section on Antiparasitic Drugs is current up to 1995 for drugs registered by class and generic name, but lacks information on toxicity or contraindications. Not all the drugs listed are available in the USA. There is a small section on drug resistance with benzimidazoles and avermectin. It includes a disclaimer to check current manufacturers' label claims for recommended doses, levels, routes and toxicity and suggests users check with the USFDA Approved Animal Drug Database, and gives the web URL. Parasite control programs covered are based on Hoechst's Horse Owners Guide to Internal Parasites and Rupert Herd's Ten Point Plan for Pasture Management, and refute the ``Twelve Great Myths of Parasite Control''. A vast and comprehensive TEXT ONLY listing of (A) diagnostic and (B) more limited range of useful research parasitology techniques are provided. Unfortunately, there are no photographs. The headings include general information on collection of faecal samples, preservation of samples for transport to the laboratory, smears, ¯oatation methods, Baermann technique, McMaster, biopsy, blood techniques, and preservation of tissues and parasites. Under the headings of the protozoa and helminths there are speci®c diagnostic techniques for individual genera. Additional information is available for items highlighted in red. Protocols and recipes are combined in one of the most useful single sources of such information known to this reviewer. Consolidated listings of up to date texts and journal articles on each of the major categories are included. A minor de®ciency is the lack of a link (there is no ability to click on an author reference in the text to go immediately to the appropriate reference). A well-constructed multiple-choice self evaluation, useful for students and anyone to test their improved knowledge, is included. There are some weaknesses (and I have suggested some improvements which could be incorporated in subsequent versions). The CD lacks a page numbering system or ``Road Map''. An index is also needed. There is no capacity to go directly to a particular
0020-7519/00/$20.00 7 2000 Australian Society for Parasitology Inc. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 0 2 0 - 7 5 1 9 ( 0 0 ) 0 0 0 3 0 - 8
676
CD-ROM Review / International Journal for Parasitology 30 (2000) 675±676
species/page number (can use the Search facility but it is rather clumsy), and it lacks a Print capacity (even a screen print would be an improvement). Although the emphasis is on parasites of horses in North America, the widespread occurrence of most intestinal parasites makes this CD of wide appeal to all animal parasitologists. For an international audience, world distribution maps might be useful for the few equine parasites that do not have a universal distribution for example Trypanosoma evansi and T. equiperdum (which are not covered on the CD, probably the most important omission for a non-American audience). Photos have no scale bars, which may be less than helpful for the novice parasitologist or layman. Some overlays of arrows/circles on important features do not align properly if the wrong Screen Font size is chosen. Size comparisons of micro®lariae of Setaria and Onchocerca in photos are dicult to assess. The special sections of the rare cases of Kumri are interesting, but unfortunately the digitized images are not up to the
same quality as the remainder on the CD. The histological sections of Halicephalobus need arrows to distinguish the worm from host tissue. In the animations of Parascaris life cycle, it needs a comment on the hatching of eggs and on what is happening during tracheal migration. Similarly with Strongylus vulgaris, the migration of the larvae in the walls of the blood vessels should indicate whether it is the worm or a thrombus that is seen. This is a minor complaint of what is a particularly dicult cycle to explain in diagrams ± the animation is very well done. This is a ``must have'' CD for anyone interested in horses and their parasites. The author and the technical people behind this project should be very pleased with this product. Hopefully it is one of the ®rst examples of this type of medium. The textbook is not yet dead but perhaps its days are numbered! Gareth W Hutchinson PhD Consultant Veterinary Parasitologist, Townsville, Queensland, Australia