A prospective multicenter observational study of Viperidae polyvalent immune F(ab')2 antivenom administration for the treatment of viper envenomation in dogs.

OBJECTIVE: To test an equine-derived polyvalent viperid antivenom (EPVA) in the treatment of dogs with evidence of viper envenomation. DESIGN: Prospective, multicenter observational study. SETTING: Veterinary emergency and critical care hospitals. ANIMALS: A total of 82 client-owned dogs with progressive clinical signs after viperid snakebite were enrolled in the study. INTERVENTIONS: Equine-derived polyvalent viperid antivenom was administered at a dosage of 1 mL/kg body weight, either by IV infusion or SC injection. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: A standardized snakebite severity score (SSS) was used to characterize the severity of envenomation and the clinical course after EPVA treatment. Most dogs had improved SSS both at 4 (65.8%) and 8 hours (81.7%) following EPVA administration. Five dogs died. At the 4-week assessment, 3 dogs had slightly abnormal hematological or coagulation parameters; all other surviving dogs showed no abnormalities. Antivenom-related acute or intermediate reactions occurred in 12 dogs (14.6%). CONCLUSIONS: In the first study on antivenom in dogs in Italy, the effects of progressive viper envenomation were stabilized or reversed in the large majority of dogs receiving EPVA, as confirmed by the SSS analyses.

High diversity of genes and plasmids encoding resistance to third-generation cephalosporins and quinolones in clinical Escherichia coli from commercial poultry flocks in Italy.

The aim was to investigate occurrence and diversity of plasmid-mediated resistance to third-generation cephalosporins (3GC) and quinolones in clinical Escherichia coli from 200 industrial poultry farms across Italy. E. coli was isolated from colibacillosis lesions in turkeys (n = 109), broilers (n = 98) and layers (n = 22) between 2008 and 2012. 3GC-resistant isolates were screened for extended-spectrum and AmpC ß-lactamase (ESBL/AmpC), while all isolates were tested for plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes. ESBL/AmpC- and PMQR-positive isolates were typed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and their plasmids were characterised by replicon typing, multilocus sequence typing, restriction fragment length polymorphism and conjugation. EBSL/AmpC genes (blaCTX-M-1, blaCTX-M-14, blaCTX-M-2, blaSHV-12 and blaCMY-2) were detected in 7%, 9% and 4% of isolates from turkeys, broilers and layers, respectively. We identified seven ESBL/AmpC-encoding plasmid types, usually conjugative (78%), with a marked prevalence of IncI1/pST3 plasmids carrying blaCTX-M-1. PMQR occurred less frequently among isolates from turkeys (0.9%) compared to those from broilers (5%) and layers (4%). The PMQR genes qnrS, qnrB19 and oqxA/B were located on three plasmid types and two non-typeable plasmids, mostly (85%) conjugative. ESBL/AmpC- and PMQR-positive isolates were genetically unrelated and 64% of them were additionally resistant to aminoglycosides, sulfonamides and tetracyclines. Our data show that 3GC- and quinolone-resistant clinical E. coli in Italian poultry production represent a highly diverse population often resistant to most antimicrobials available for poultry. These findings underline the crucial need to develop new strategies for prevention and control of colibacillosis.

Serum levels of ochratoxin A in dogs with chronic kidney disease (CKD): a retrospective study.

Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a mycotoxin produced by secondary metabolism of several fungi belonging to the genera Aspergillus and Penicillium. OTA is potentially nephrotoxic, neurotoxic, immunotoxic and carcinogenic in several animal species and in humans. This toxin has been detected in several human food and animal feed. The aim of this study was to determine OTA in blood samples of healthy and affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD) dogs. CKD group showed higher incidence of OTA-positivity than healthy dogs (96 vs. 56%) and a significantly higher median value of OTA plasma concentration (0.008 vs. 0.144 ng/ml). No significant correlation was observed between OTA levels and creatinine values in CKD dogs. This is the first study regarding OTA detection in plasma samples of healthy and CKD dogs; the presence of this toxin is higher in nephropatic patients but is not yet clear, if it is correlated with progression of the disease.

Selective and simultaneous determination of NSAIDs in equine plasma by HPLC with molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction.

BACKGROUND: Detection of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in equine plasma is a significant analytical problem in veterinary anti-doping controls. RESULTS: A new HPLC method coupled to selective extraction with molecularly imprinted polymers was developed for the simultaneous determination in equine plasma of the NSAIDs phenylbutazone, flunixin, oxyphenbutazone, ketoprofen and naproxen. The analytical performances of the method have been evaluated both in standard solutions and equine plasma samples. Recovery: Molecularly imprinted polymers solid-phase extraction for all NSAIDs was >94% with intra-day values below 15.0% and inter-day values below 20%. Method quantification limit was 0.01 µg/ml. CONCLUSION: The developed method could be considered as a useful alternative to existing screening methods for the determination of NSAIDs in the context of studies of pharmacokinetics and anti-doping controls.

Antimicrobial resistance of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae isolated from swine.

The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the antimicrobial resistance rates and the trend in resistance of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae isolated from pigs in Italy from 1994 to 2009. A total of 992 A. pleuropneumoniae isolates were tested for their susceptibility to a panel of antimicrobial agents in a disk diffusion method. Resistance to 7 drugs (amoxicillin, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, ampicillin, cefquinome, cotrimoxazole, penicillin G and tilmicosin) showed a significant increasing trend over the time, while for 2 drugs (gentamycin and marbofloxacin) a significant decrease was observed. Resistance to the remaining 14 antimicrobial agents tested did not change significantly over the study period. Most of the isolates retained high susceptibility to antimicrobials usually effective against A. pleuropneumoniae such as amphenicols, fluoroquinolones and ceftiofur. However, high rates of resistance were observed for potentiated sulfa drugs, tetracyclines and penicillins which are currently recommended antimicrobials for pig pleuropneumonia therapy. Our results suggest the importance of continued monitoring of A. pleuropneumoniae clinical isolates in order to choose the most appropriate treatment of infections and to control the increase of resistance to currently used antimicrobials.

Use of antimicrobials in companion animal practice: a retrospective study in a veterinary teaching hospital in Italy.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the use of antimicrobials in a veterinary teaching hospital for companion animals in Italy, with particular regard to the agreement with recommendations of prudent use METHODS: The study was conducted with a retrospective, cross-sectional design. The population under investigation included 18,905 cats and dogs that were referred to the hospital between 2000 and 2007. Two different samples of the clinical paper forms were randomly selected to estimate the prevalence of animals receiving an antimicrobial prescription and to describe the pattern of antimicrobials used in relation to the condition being treated. The proportion of antimicrobials prescribed accomplishing recommendations of prudent use was also estimated, as well as the level of agreement with specific, diagnosis-based guidelines for antimicrobial use. RESULTS: Broad-spectrum antimicrobials, including penicillins with ß-lactamase inhibitors, first-generation cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones, were the most frequently prescribed compounds. Antimicrobials prescribed with the support of microbiological analyses and susceptibility testing were less than 5%. Among the recommendation of prudent use, the availability of information from laboratory testing had the poorest degree of agreement, while the other evaluated items were accomplished in most of the cases. CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlight the need to improve the procedures of antimicrobial prescription in the study setting. This can be achieved by supporting the guidance for antimicrobial use at the local level, with the adoption of specific guidelines, and at the national level with a further implementation of the policies of prudent prescriptions.

Genotypic versus phenotypic identification of staphylococcal species of canine origin with special reference to Staphylococcus schleiferi subsp. coagulans.

A comparative study was performed to examine the respective accuracy of 16S rDNA sequencing and of the commercial biochemical assay ID32 STAPH (bioMérieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France) in the identification of 232 staphylococcal samples representing 20 species and subspecies isolated from 367 dogs. Notable differences in species distribution were observed by comparing genotypic and phenotypic data. Partial sequencing of 16S rDNA resulted in an unambiguous identification of 226 (97.4%) of the isolates, whereas the phenotypic approach resulted in a correct diagnosis of 162 (69.8%) of the isolates. Statistical agreement between genotypic and phenotypic identification of staphylococci was substantial (Kappa coefficient of 0.6-0.8) for Staphylococcus aureus, S. hominis, S. warneri, S. cohnii subsp. urealyticus, and S. simulans, and "almost perfect" (Kappa coefficient of 0.8-1) for S. intermedius, S. epidermidis, S. equorum, S. haemolyticus, S. sciuri, and S. kloosi. No agreement above that expected by chance (Kappa coefficient=0) was observed for S. schleiferi subsp. coagulans, which was either confounded with S. intermedius and S. capitis, or categorized as unacceptable by the biochemical assay. Given the growing importance of this pathogen in veterinary medicine and its frequent misidentification with related staphylococci, a PCR-RFLP approach producing a S. schleiferi-specific restriction profile was developed. This fast and reliable assay represents a valuable tool in assisting in the monitoring of this pathogen.