BEVA primary care clinical guidelines: Equine parasite control.

BACKGROUND: There is a lack of consensus on how best to balance our need to minimise the risk of parasite-associated disease in the individual horse, with the need to limit the use of anthelmintics in the population to preserve their efficacy through delaying further development of resistance. OBJECTIVES: To develop evidence-based guidelines utilising a modified GRADE framework. METHODS: A panel of veterinary scientists with relevant expertise and experience was convened. Relevant research questions were identified and developed with associated search terms being defined. Evidence in the veterinary literature was evaluated using the GRADE evidence-to-decision framework. Literature searches were performed utilising CAB abstracts and PubMed. Where there was insufficient evidence to answer the research question the panel developed practical guidance based on their collective knowledge and experience. RESULTS: Search results are presented, and recommendation or practical guidance were made in response to 37 clinically relevant questions relating to the use of anthelmintics in horses. MAIN LIMITATIONS: There was insufficient evidence to answer many of the questions with any degree of certainty and practical guidance frequently had to be based upon extrapolation of relevant information and the panel members' collective experience and opinions. CONCLUSIONS: Equine parasite control practices and current recommendations have a weak evidence base. These guidelines highlight changes in equine parasite control that should be considered to reduce the threat of parasite-associated disease and delay the development of further anthelmintic resistance.

Do tapered tracheostomy cuffs improve translaryngeal gas flow when compared to barrel cuffed fenestrated tubes: A laboratory study.

Objective: The benefits of tracheostomy are well documented and include improved comfort and a reduction in sedative requirements that may facilitate more rapid ventilation weaning. A stable airway established with tracheostomy allows pulmonary toilet that may help in addressing aspiration. It is postulated that it may also increase translargyngeal airflow and allow phonation. We hypothesized that taper-shaped cuffed tracheostomy tubes have less bulk upon cuff deflation, and on this basis, gas flow past the deflated tapered cuff is better than non-tapered barrel cuffs and equal to gas flow in equivalent-sized fenestrated versions. Methods: This comparative bench study measured exhaled gas flow of Shiley™ Flexible taper-cuffed tracheostomy and Fenestrated Shiley™ FEN tubes of equivalent sizes. Three sizes of Shiley™ tracheostomy tubes were used in printed 3D model tracheas, Jackson sizes 4, 6, and 10 (6.5, 7.5, and 10 mm ISO sizes). A standard ventilator provided tidal volumes to mechanical lungs. Because expiratory volume was the focus, the mechanical lungs exhaled through the model trachea and only the air exiting the model trachea, representing exhalation, was measured. Results: Across three sizes, the Shiley™ Flexible tracheostomy tube allowed significantly more translaryngeal airflow compared to the tracheostomy tube with fenestrations. Conclusion: This bench study showed significantly improved air flow past the cuff compared to fenestrated tubes. Improved airflow may help the phonation ability of patients. Clinical studies are required to elucidate use of this cuff design to allow phonation in patients with a tracheostomy.Level of evidence: NA.

Increasing resistance to multiple anthelmintic classes in gastrointestinal nematodes on sheep farms in southwest England.

BACKGROUND: Anthelmintic resistance (AR) in gastrointestinal nematodes (GIN) is increasing globally, and farmers are encouraged to adopt sustainable control measures. Haemonchus contortus is increasingly reported in the UK, potentially complicating effective GIN control. METHODS: Faecal egg count reduction tests (FECRT) were conducted on 13 farms in north Devon, England, UK in 2016. Relative abundance of H. contortus was quantified using peanut agglutinin staining and used to estimate faecal egg count reduction percentages (FECR%) using the eggCounts R package. RESULTS: On average, farms had GIN resistance to three anthelmintic classes. No farms had susceptibility to all anthelmintics tested. AR was more prevalent in 2016 than on the same farms in 2013. H. contortus was present on 85% of the farms tested and comprised on average 6% (0%-52%) of GIN eggs before treatment. Resistance or suspected resistance to all anthelmintics tested was observed in this species on different farms. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrate diversity of AR profiles on farms, apparent progression of AR within a 3-year period, and challenges detecting AR in mixed-species infections. Where possible, interpretation of mixed-species FECRT should take into account the relative abundance of species pre- and post-treatment to identify pragmatic treatment options targeting individual genera.

Response to resources and parasites depends on health status in extensively grazed sheep.

A fundamental question in animal ecology is how an individual's internal state and the external environment together shape species distributions across habitats. The increasing availability of biologgers is driving a revolution in answering this question in a wide range of species. In this study, the position of sheep (Ovis aries) from Global Positioning System collars was integrated with remote sensing data, field sampling of parasite distributions, and parasite load and health measures for each tagged individual. This allowed inter-individual variation in habitat use to be examined. Once controlling for a positive relationship between vegetation productivity and tick abundance, healthier individuals spent more of their time at sites with higher vegetation productivity, while less healthy individuals showed a stronger (negative) response to tick abundance. These trends are likely to represent a trade-off in foraging decisions that vary between individuals based on their health status. Given the rarity of studies that explore how animal distributions are affected by health and external factors, we demonstrate the value of integrating biologging technology with remote sensing data, traditional ecological sampling and individual measures of animal health. Our study, using extensively grazed sheep as a model system, opens new possibilities to study free-living grazing systems.

A SURVEY OF GASTROINTESTINAL PARASITES OF WILD AND ORPHAN GREATER ONE-HORNED RHINO ( RHINOCEROS UNICORNIS) IN KAZIRANGA NATIONAL PARK, ASSAM, INDIA.

Wild greater one-horned rhinos ( Rhinoceros unicornis), orphaned juveniles in human care, and orphaned calves from Kaziranga National Park, Assam, India were surveyed coprologically for gastrointestinal parasites. Parasite infections were present in 100% of wild rhino samples, 96% of orphaned juvenile samples, and 27% of orphaned calf samples. In wild rhino, observed parasite ova were primarily of trematodes Paramphistomum sp. (100%), followed by those of strongyle nematodes (94%) and the cestode Anoplocephala sp. (56%). Orphaned juvenile and calf samples were positive only for strongyles. Total fecal parasite egg counts were recorded in wild rhino (mean 64 eggs per gram [epg], range 0-270), orphan juveniles (mean 43 epg, range 0-145), and orphan calves (mean 2 epg, range 0-10). Results suggest that parasite infection in rhinos in this setting is common, though more extensive sampling would provide further information on epidemiology and potential impacts on individual health and population viability.