Review article
Contagious equine metritis
Matko Perharić
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Zoran Milas
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Vilim Starešina
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Ljubo Barbić
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Zrinka Štritof Majetić
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Josipa Habuš
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Vladimir Stevanović
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Vesna Mojčec Perko
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Krešimir Martinković
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Nenad Turk
; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Contagious equine metritis is a venereal transmissible disease of horses, manifested with pathological discharge from the vagina, temporary infertility and rarely abortion. Infected stallions do not get sick and do not manifest any clinical signs, but are carriers of pathogen. The pathogen is a Gram-negative, microaerophilically, coccobacillus bacteria Taylorella equigenitalis. The main sources of infection are infected mares and stallions in which the agent is on the external genitalia. The disease is mainly transmitted by natural mating, contaminated objects, and artifi cial insemination with infected semen. Clinical signs of disease in the majority of cases occur between two to 10 days after infection. The mares are refl ected pathological vaginal discharge, temporary infertility and rarely abortion. In case those mares conceive they may infect foal. So infected foals become carriers and when they reach sexual maturity can spread infection. Numerous mares are latency infected for a long period. Diagnosis is primarily based on isolation and identifi cation by performing swabs taken from predilection points on external genitalia of mares and stallions. Treatment is successfully maintained in both sexes and it is based on topical fl ushed with a dilution of disinfection agent and local application of antibiotic ointment. Because of its high contagious nature, progressive spreading, potential economic losses and diffi culties to diagnose in latently infected animals prophylactic measures are directed toward preventing introduction of pathogen into uninfected population.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
231839
URI
Publication date:
17.6.2013.
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