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Update on anthrax outbreak in Canada
West Nile virus The news in New York reports a number of human deaths from encephalitis suspected to be caused by a virus never diagnosed before on the American continent. The virologist are calling it a West Nile-like virus, according to reports on the ProMed web site. The virus is carried by birds and transmitted to humans by mosquitoes, according to preliminary reports. Equine practitioners in New York are watching carefully for possible equine infection with the vires. Several suspicious cases in horses have occurred according to reports on ECN. None have been positively identified, and there is the possibility that these horses were showing signs of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) or herpes. According to a report at the Eighth International Conference on Equine Infectious Diseases: "West Nile virus is mosquito-borne and is transmitted, principally by Culex univittatus, which occurs throughout most parts of southern Africa. This mosquito species is predominantly ornithophilic but sometimes feeds on man and other m a m m a l s . . . During each summer on the inland plateau of South Africa, West Nile virus is maintained in a feral cycle between Cx. univittatus and various avian species. In South Africa, positive antibody prevalence rates of 16% in sheep and cattle on the Highveld and rates of 21 -47% in older cattle and horses in Johannesburg have been reported. Although most infections are subclinical, Jupp referred to sporadic cases of meningoencephalitis in horses in France associated with severe nervous signs."
promed @ usa.heaithnet.org
Equine Infectious Diseases VIII, R&W Publications, Newmarket, UK Jupp, P.G. (1994) Vectors: Mosquitoes. In: Infectious Diseases of Livestock with
Special Reference to Southern Africa, 1st edn. Eds: Coetzer, Thomson and Tustin. Oxford Univ. Press Southern Africa, Cape Town, pp 90-102.
New influenza vaccine Dorothy Holmes, DVM, PhD, has been working for the past ten years to develop an equine influenza vaccine that is superior to those that are commercially available. Instead of being delivered by injection, Holmes'vaccine can be sprayed into a horse's nose. And it provides protection against the flu for at least ten months, much longer than other vaccines. Holmes successfully developed two vaccines because horses are susceptible to two types of influenza viruses. Another outstanding advantage to Holmes'vaccines is that they cause no side effects. The older, injected vaccines often caused swelling, muscle soreness, appetite loss, and dullness° And since owners were encouraged to vaccinate their horses a week before a competition or other large gatherings of horses, many owners wouldn't use the vaccine for fear that their horse would be temporarily compromised. Unlike other vaccines, Holmes'vaccine is also temperature sensitive, growing only in the cooler upper respiratory tracts, and therefore incapable of producing illness in the lungs.
Update on anthrax outbreak in Canada Several farms in Alberta, Canada, were quarantined this past summer after cattle died from anthrax. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has vaccinated about 650 head of cattle in the area and another 25,000 have been vaccinated by private veterinarians, according to a report by ProMED.
Volume 19, Number 10, 1999
Dr. Holmes developed influenza vaccines that can be sprayed directly into a horse's nose. Here she swabs a horse's pharynx for virus samples.
The Clearwater Veterinary Clinic at Rocky Mountain House ran out of vaccine and cattlemen were put on a waiting list to receive it. Animals vaccinated for the first time should receive a booster in about 30 days.
627
promed @ usa.heaithnet.org
Equine Infectious Diseases VIII, R&W Publications, Newmarket, UK Jupp, P.G. (1994) Vectors: Mosquitoes. In: Infectious Diseases of Livestock with
Special Reference to Southern Africa, 1st edn. Eds: Coetzer, Thomson and Tustin. Oxford Univ. Press Southern Africa, Cape Town, pp 90-102.
New influenza vaccine Dorothy Holmes, DVM, PhD, has been working for the past ten years to develop an equine influenza vaccine that is superior to those that are commercially available. Instead of being delivered by injection, Holmes'vaccine can be sprayed into a horse's nose. And it provides protection against the flu for at least ten months, much longer than other vaccines. Holmes successfully developed two vaccines because horses are susceptible to two types of influenza viruses. Another outstanding advantage to Holmes'vaccines is that they cause no side effects. The older, injected vaccines often caused swelling, muscle soreness, appetite loss, and dullness° And since owners were encouraged to vaccinate their horses a week before a competition or other large gatherings of horses, many owners wouldn't use the vaccine for fear that their horse would be temporarily compromised. Unlike other vaccines, Holmes'vaccine is also temperature sensitive, growing only in the cooler upper respiratory tracts, and therefore incapable of producing illness in the lungs.
Update on anthrax outbreak in Canada Several farms in Alberta, Canada, were quarantined this past summer after cattle died from anthrax. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has vaccinated about 650 head of cattle in the area and another 25,000 have been vaccinated by private veterinarians, according to a report by ProMED.
Volume 19, Number 10, 1999
Dr. Holmes developed influenza vaccines that can be sprayed directly into a horse's nose. Here she swabs a horse's pharynx for virus samples.
The Clearwater Veterinary Clinic at Rocky Mountain House ran out of vaccine and cattlemen were put on a waiting list to receive it. Animals vaccinated for the first time should receive a booster in about 30 days.
627