Australian Veterinary JournalVolume 93, Issue 6 p. 179-180 SCIENTIFIC AND CLINICALFree Access In this issue – June 2015 Hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy in horses · Dental abnormalities in horses · Canine neural angiostrongylosis · PCR or culture for canine septic arthritis · Amaranthus spp. toxicity in lambs · Measuring dehydration in neonatal calves · New pure strains of Trichostrongylus vitrinus now available First published: 26 May 2015 https://doi.org/10.1111/avj.12334AboutSectionsPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Equine A European study describes a techniques of standing hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy (HALS) in five horses.1 Recognition, diagnosis and treatment of spleen pathologies in horses is challenging; splenectomy using general anaesthesia and open surgery with or without removal of ribs has been described. The authors discuss the pros and cons of laparoscopic splenectomy in human patients, which include decreased postoperative pain, recovery time, bleeding and complication rates, and improved cosmesis, but longer surgery time and problems if there is splenic trauma. Combined laparoscopy and laparotomy has been used in humans, and in horses for some conditions. This study shows, diagrammatically and in photographs, the details of the surgery, including the position of the laparoscopic portals. The authors conclude that standing HALS is a feasible experimental procedure in medium-sized horses, and show the short-term follow-up (that was a requirement of this experimental study) and suggest longer term follow-up and further studies before it can be recommended in a clinical setting. All horses should have regular dental examinations for early identification of dental disorders, to limit more severe conditions in older animals.2 A survey of dental abnormalities using 400 horses' heads from an abattoir in Queensland reports on the association of different conditions with four age groups. The authors found that 93.8% of the heads had one or more dental abnormalities, with retained deciduous teeth and exaggerated transverse ridges the most common in the younger age group. More research is needed to assess the clinical consequences of these abnormalities. Small animals Young and entire dogs are at greater risk of developing canine neural angiostrongylosis, a case–control study suggests.3 Naturally occurring cases of neural angiostrongylosis, caused by the rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensi), have been increasing in Australian human and canine patients, and the condition is behaving as an emerging infectious disease. It frequently develops from ingesting slugs or snails, which are the intermediate hosts of the larvae. The authors discuss the different diagnostic criteria and the difficulty in diagnosis, and that a positive CSF ELISA is the gold standard test. Canine neural angiostrongylosis should be considered in dogs that present with ascending signs of paresis with spinal hyperaesthesia, in autumn and early winter, especially if CSF contains excess numbers of eosinophils. Two papers from the same group assess the evaluation of bacterial isolation from synovial fluid in dogs that have suspected septic arthritis.4, 5 In the first study, the authors report a retrospective clinical study using bacterial culture of synovial fluid and report a sensitivity of 44%. Contrary to previous reports, positive bacterial culture was not increased if the dogs had had prior joint surgery. They discuss the limitations in using bacterial culture and conclude that improved diagnostic tests such as PCR are needed. In their second paper, the authors compare bacterial culture with PCR in another group of dogs. They found no significant differences in sensitivity between culture and PCR, or culture and combined culture and PCR. The specificity of this PCR was only 43% compared with 100% for culture. They suggest that additional methods are needed to guide timely antimicrobial therapy in these dogs. Production animals Amaranthus spp. have the potential to cause severe toxicity, according to a report of an outbreak of acute renal failure in flock of 9-month-old ewe lambs.6 A farmer found a group of recumbent and dead lambs that were grazing on wheat stubble. From a mob of 194 lambs, 28 died and pregnancy rates were markedly less in animals that survived compared with others on the farm on other paddocks. Clinical and pathological features included azotaemia, dehydration and cellular casts without basement membranes in the urine, and acute tubular necrosis. This is generally caused by necrotic or toxic injury, especially from oxalates. The authors conclude that based on all signs and pathology, and the exclusion of other possible causative plant species, the outbreak was due to Amaranthus spp. The report shows with clear images the plant, the lack of green feed on the pasture and the pathology of the condition. They suggest that the toxin is likely to be available only at a certain stage of the plant-s growth and enough toxin is only eaten where there is limited other forage available. They suggest that early identification of renal failure and change of pasture potentially limited the number of deaths. A study from Queensland reports that simple assessment methods to estimate the severity of dehydration of neonatal calves that are not suckling are imprecise.7 Losses of neonatal Brahman-cross calves ranges from 15% and 39% in the driest regions of Australia, where daily fluid loss may be 7% of body weight. Results of this study showed that if the calves lost more than 15% of body weight (which was equivalent to 20% dehydration), they would be unable to recover without further intervention. Further studies are needed in a wider population of cattle breeds and environments. Gastrointestinal nematodes are have a great economic effect on the Australian sheep industry and research is necessary for diagnosis, monitoring drench resistance and development of new anthelminthics.8 The pure strains of the parasites that are essential for this work have been lost. An experimental report describes methods of isolation of pure Trichstrongylus vitrinus from naturally acquired infections in sheep. The group have made available cryopreserved reference samples that can be used in the future for Australian and international research. The authors also note the availability of a pure isolate of Telodorsagia circumcincta, which was also generated by this study. References 1 Gracia-Calvo LA, Martín-Cuervo M, Jiménez J et al. Development of a technique for standing hand-assisted laparoscopic splenectomy in five horses. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 183– 188. 2 Chinkangsadarn T, Wilson GJ, Greer RM et al. An abattoir survey of equine dental abnormalities in Queensland, Australia. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 189– 194. 3 Walker AG, Spielman D, Malik R et al. Canine neural angiostrongylosis: a case–control study in Sydney dogs. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 195– 199. 4 Scharf VF, Lewis ST, Wellehan JF et al. Retrospective evaluation of the efficacy of isolating bacteria from synovial fluid in dogs with suspected septic arthritis. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 200– 203. 5 Scharf VF, Lewis ST, Wellehan JF et al. Comparison of synovial fluid culture and 16S rRNA PCR in dogs with suspected septic arthritis. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 204– 207. 6 Kessell AE, Boulton J, Krebs GL et al. Acute renal failure associated with Amaranthus species ingestion by lambs. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 208– 213. 7 Fordyce G, Olchowy Twj, Anderson A. Hydration in non-suckling neonatal Brahman-cross calves. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 214– 220. 8 Blackburn PJ, Carmichael IH, Walkden-Brown SW et al. Use of developmental temperature and gastrointestinal tract location to isolate pure Trichostrongylus vitrinus from mixed, naturally acquired trichostrongylid infections in sheep. Aust Vet J 2015; 93: 221– 224. Volume93, Issue6June 2015Pages 179-180 ReferencesRelatedInformation
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