HEALTH ASSESSMENT OF CAPTIVE AND FREE-LIVING EUROPEAN POND TURTLES (EMYS ORBICULARIS) IN SWITZERLAND.

The highly endangered European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) was reintroduced in Switzerland in 2010. Up until 2019, no routine medical examinations have been carried out prior to its release or during recapture events. The aim of this study was to assess the health status of captive and free-living Emys orbicularis populations in Switzerland, taking into account the most important and frequently occurring health threats to freshwater turtles. A total of 141 European pond turtles, including captive (n = 89) and free-living (n = 52) individuals, underwent clinical examination (n = 136), choanal and cloacal swab collection for microbiology investigation (n = 140), blood sampling (n = 121), fecal examination for parasitology (n = 92), radiography (n = 84), and ultrasound (n = 46). Microbiology investigation included conventional PCR for herpesvirus, ranavirus, and Mycoplasma spp. Blood was used for the establishment of reference values for hematocrit, leukocyte count, and differential blood count as well as for biochemistry parameters tested with the VetScan VS2. An emydid Mycoplasma was detected in 40% (n = 56/140; 95%CI: 31.82-48.61%) of the turtles, including one individual with upper respiratory signs. Four animals positive for Mycoplasma arrived dead or were euthanized during the study period. Their necropsies revealed no evidence of respiratory disease. No ranavirus or herpesvirus was detected in any of the tested turtles. Two presumptively fatal infections with spirorchiid trematodes were reported during the study period. Endoparasites were detected in only 7.94% of the samples examined. This study provides comprehensive data on the current health status of the largest sample size of captive and free-living populations of Emys orbicularis ever assessed to date and serves as a baseline for future research investigations and management recommendations in this species.

Analysis of a European general wildlife health surveillance program: Chances, challenges and recommendations.

In a One Health perspective general wildlife health surveillance (GWHS) gains importance worldwide, as pathogen transmission among wildlife, domestic animals and humans raises health, conservation and economic concerns. However, GWHS programs operate in the face of legal, geographical, financial, or administrative challenges. The present study uses a multi-tiered approach to understand the current characteristics, strengths and gaps of a European GWHS that operates in a fragmented legislative and multi-stakeholder environment. The aim is to support the implementation or improvement of other GWHS systems by managers, surveillance experts, and administrations. To assess the current state of wildlife health investigations and trends within the GWHS, we retrospectively analyzed 20 years of wildlife diagnostic data to explore alterations in annual case numbers, diagnosed diseases, and submitter types, conducted an online survey and phone interviews with official field partners (hunting administrators, game wardens and hunters) to assess their case submission criteria as well as their needs for post-mortem investigations, and performed in-house time estimations of post-mortem investigations to conduct a time-per-task analysis. Firstly, we found that infectious disease dynamics, the level of public awareness for specific diseases, research activities and increasing population sizes of in depth-monitored protected species, together with biogeographical and political boundaries all impacted case numbers and can present unexpected challenges to a GWHS. Secondly, we found that even a seemingly comprehensive GWHS can feature pronounced information gaps, with underrepresentation of common or easily recognizable diseases, blind spots in non-hunted species and only a fraction of discovered carcasses being submitted. Thirdly, we found that substantial amounts of wildlife health data may be available at local hunting administrations or disease specialist centers, but outside the reach of the GWHS and its processes. In conclusion, we recommend that fragmented and federalist GWHS programs like the one addressed require a central, consistent and accessible collection of wildlife health data. Also, considering the growing role of citizen observers in environmental research, we recommend using online reporting systems to harness decentrally available information and fill wildlife health information gaps.

Direct and indirect pathways for the spread of African swine fever and other porcine infectious diseases: An application of the mental models approach.

In this study, we investigated the occurrence of direct and indirect infectious disease transmission pathways among pig farms in Switzerland, as well as their specific relevance for the spread of African swine fever, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), and enzootic pneumonia. Data were collected using an adapted mental models approach, involving initial interviews with experts in the field of pig health and logistics, semi-structured interviews with pig farmers, and a final expert workshop, during which all identified pathways were graded by their predicted frequency of occurrence, their likelihood of spread of the three diseases of interest, and their overall relevance considering both parameters. As many as 24 disease pathways were identified in four areas: pig trade, farmer encounters, external collaborators, and environmental or other pathways. Two thirds of the pathways were expected to occur with moderate-to-high frequency. While both direct and indirect pig trade transmission routes were highly relevant for the spread of the three pathogens, pathways from the remaining areas were especially important for PRRS due to higher spread potential via aerosols and fomites. In addition, we identified factors modifying the relevance of disease pathways, such as farm production type and affiliation with trader companies. During the interviews, we found varying levels of risk perception among farmers concerning some of the pathways, which affected adherence to biosecurity measures and were often linked to the degree of trust that farmers had towards their colleagues and external collaborators. Our findings highlight the importance of integrating indirect disease pathways into existing surveillance and control strategies and in disease modelling efforts. We also propose that biosecurity training aimed at professionals and risk communication campaigns targeting farmers should be considered to mitigate the risk of disease spread through the identified pathways.

Habitat selection by free-roaming domestic dogs in rabies endemic countries in rural and urban settings.

Domestic dogs can affect human health through bites and pathogen transmission, particularly in resource-poor countries where dogs, including owned ones, predominantly roam freely. Habitat and resource selection analysis methods are commonplace in wildlife studies but have not been used to investigate the environmental resource use of free-roaming domestic dogs (FRDD). The present study implements GPS devices to investigate habitat selection by FRDD from an urban site and a rural site in Indonesia, and one urban and two rural sites in Guatemala (N = 321 dogs). Spatial mixed effects logistic regression models, accounting for heterogeneous distribution of the resources, showed that patterns of habitat selection by FRDD were similar across study sites. The most preferred resources were anthropogenic, being buildings and roads, which implies selection for human proximity. Vegetation and open fields were less preferred and steep terrain was avoided, indicating that FRDD were synanthropic and that their space patterns likely optimised energy use. Results presented here provide novel data on FRDD habitat selection patterns, while improving our understanding of dog roaming behaviour. These findings provide insights into possible high-risk locations for pathogen transmission for diseases such as rabies, and can assist management authorities in the planning and deployment of efficient disease control campaigns, including oral vaccination.

Treatment of digital dermatitis using salicylic acid in European bison (Bison bonasus) reveals promising results.

Digital dermatitis (DD) associated with the presence of multiple Treponema spp. was recently described for the first time in European bison (Bison bonasus). DD is characterized by skin inflammation in the distal foot area in various ungulates. The objective of this proof of concept study was to test a treatment protocol adopted from cattle for its applicability in this wildlife species using five animals. Keratolytic salicylic acid paste was administered topically under bandages for seven days to enable removal of the affected skin. All interventions were performed under general anesthesia. To evaluate the treatment efficacy, photographs and biopsies were taken pre- and post-treatment. The biopsies were examined histologically, by PCR for the presence of different bacterial species, by Treponema-specific fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), and by transmission electron microscopy. Based on photographs, complete clinical healing of the 15 feet with macroscopical DD lesions was achieved. Histological examination showed mild to moderate dermatitis in 17/20 feet before, and in 12/20 feet after treatment. 17/20 feet were Treponema spp. PCR positive before, and none was positive after treatment. Dichelobacter nodosus, Fusobacterium necrophorum, and Porphyromonas levii could not be detected in any of the samples. By FISH and electron microscopy, Treponema spp. could be visualized in the stratum corneum before, but not after treatment. These results suggest that this treatment method can be applied as standard practice prior to transporting DD affected European bison to prevent the spread of this contagious disease.

THE IMPLEMENTATION GAP IN EMERGING DISEASE RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE WILDLIFE TRADE.

The wildlife trade has been characterized as one of the biggest risk factors in the emergence of new infectious diseases. In the shadow of COVID-19, there is growing political and scientific urgency to manage this risk. Existing studies and experiences make it clear that something must be done but are less clear on how to get it done. It is a quite different task to accumulate evidence on the presence of pathogens, their locations in the supply chain, and their spillover to new hosts than to identify effective ways to prevent and mitigate emerging disease under real-world conditions. This study sought peer-reviewed evidence on the effectiveness, acceptability, feasibility, and sustainability of risk reduction interventions for zoonotic and nonzoonotic disease emergence in the wildlife trade. An environmental scan triangulated information from a scoping review following a Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis extension for scoping review protocol, two narrative literature reviews, and key informant interviews of 26 international wildlife health experts. Existing literature has been inattentive to program implementation or evaluation studies. There was insufficient evidence to identify effective and sustainable risk management actions. Studies on the effects of social, epidemiologic, and ecologic context on intervention success was lacking, as was research using a complex systems perspective. The lack of systematic program evaluations or implementation studies leaves decision makers with insufficient evidence to select interventions likely to be acceptable, effective, and sustainable within and across the disparate context of the wildlife trade. This necessitates adaptive risk management and innovations in program implementation and evaluation to ensure evidence-based risk management.

Biomechanical evaluation of two dorsal and two ventral stabilization techniques for atlantoaxial joint instability in toy-breed dogs.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the biomechanical properties of atlantoaxial joints (AAJs) in canine vertebral column specimens stabilized with 4 techniques (dorsal wire, modified dorsal clamp, ventral transarticular pin, and augmented ventral transarticular pin fixation) after transection of the AAJ ligaments. SAMPLE: 13 skull and cranial vertebral column segments from 13 cadaveric toy-breed dogs. PROCEDURES: Vertebral column segments from the middle aspect of the skull to C5 were harvested and prepared; AAJ ligament and joint capsule integrity was preserved. The atlantooccipital joint and C2 to C5 vertebral column segments were fixed with 2 transarticular Kirschner wires each. The occipital bone and caudalmost aspect of each specimen were embedded in polymethylmethacrylate. Range of motion of the AAJ under shear loading conditions up to 15 N was determined for each specimen during the third of 3 loading cycles with intact ligaments, after ligament transection, and after stabilization with each technique in random order. For each specimen, a load-to-failure test was performed with the fixation type tested last. RESULTS: All stabilization techniques except for dorsal clamp fixation were associated with significantly decreased AAJ range of motion, compared with results when ligaments were intact or transected. The AAJs with dorsal wire, ventral transarticular pin, and augmented ventral transarticular pin fixations had similar biomechanical properties. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Dorsal wire, ventral transarticular pin, and augmented ventral transarticular pin fixation increased rigidity, compared with results for AAJs with intact ligaments and for AAJs with experimentally created instability. Additional studies are needed to assess long-term stability of AAJs stabilized with these techniques.

Evolution of COVID-19 mortality over time: results from the Swiss hospital surveillance system (CH-SUR).

BACKGROUND: When the periods of time during and after the first wave of the ongoing SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic in Europe are compared, the associated COVID-19 mortality seems to have decreased substantially. Various factors could explain this trend, including changes in demographic characteristics of infected persons and the improvement of case management. To date, no study has been performed to investigate the evolution of COVID-19 in-hospital mortality in Switzerland, while also accounting for risk factors. METHODS: We investigated the trends in COVID-19-related mortality (in-hospital and in-intermediate/intensive-care) over time in Switzerland, from February 2020 to June 2021, comparing in particular the first and the second wave. We used data from the COVID-19 Hospital-based Surveillance (CH-SUR) database. We performed survival analyses adjusting for well-known risk factors of COVID-19 mortality (age, sex and comorbidities) and accounting for competing risk. RESULTS: Our analysis included 16,984 patients recorded in CH-SUR, with 2201 reported deaths due to COVID-19 (13.0%). We found that overall in-hospital mortality was lower during the second wave of COVID-19 than in the first wave (hazard ratio [HR] 0.70, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.63- 0.78; p <0.001), a decrease apparently not explained by changes in demographic characteristics of patients. In contrast, mortality in intermediate and intensive care significantly increased in the second wave compared with the first wave (HR 1.25, 95% CI 1.05-1.49; p = 0.029), with significant changes in the course of hospitalisation between the first and the second wave. CONCLUSION: We found that, in Switzerland, COVID-19 mortality decreased among hospitalised persons, whereas it increased among patients admitted to intermediate or intensive care, when comparing the second wave to the first wave. We put our findings in perspective with changes over time in case management, treatment strategy, hospital burden and non-pharmaceutical interventions. Further analyses of the potential effect of virus variants and of vaccination on mortality would be crucial to have a complete overview of COVID-19 mortality trends throughout the different phases of the pandemic.