Increased urinary excretion of endothelin during hypothermic perfusion preservation in kidneys subjected to preretrieval warm ischemic injury.

The purpose of the study was two-fold: 1) to determine whether endothelin (ET) levels could be detected in the ureteral effluent during hypothermic perfusion preservation (HPP) and; 2) to determine whether preretrieval warm ischemic (WI) injury is associated with increased ureteral excretion of ET. In situ pre-WI injury was induced in Lewis rats (n=10) by a 30-min extrinsic occlusion of the suprarenal aorta. The left kidney underwent 16 hr of HPP, and ureteral effluent (UE) from ischemic and control kidneys (n=10) was collected over 16 hr of HPP. The UE ET concentration and total ET excretion over 16 hr of HPP were significantly higher in kidneys subjected to pre-WI injury compared with nonischemic controls. Kidneys subjected to pre-WI injury can be distinguished from nonischemic control kidneys during HPP by a significantly higher concentration of ET in the UE and a higher overall excretion of ET during HPP.

Fetal maceration and retention of fetal bones in a mare.

A 19-year-old Quarter Horse mare was evaluated because of bloody vaginal discharge that was apparent immediately following breeding. On transrectal ultrasonography, it was evident that the uterus was filled with fluid containing echogenic particles; linear hyperechoic structures were also visible. Endoscopy was performed, which revealed a number of bones adhered to the cranial wall and floor of the right uterine horn as well as purulent fluid in both uterine horns. Bacterial endometritis and fetal maceration were diagnosed. The mare was treated with antibiotics, and the fetal bones were manually removed from the uterus. Fetal maceration with intrauterine retention of bones is rare in mares. Use of hysteroscopy supplements ultrasonography in the diagnosis of uncommon conditions of the uterus. Macerated bones may be adhered to the endometrium, thereby requiring manual removal.

On-farm study of human contact networks to document potential pathways for avian influenza transmission between commercial poultry farms in Ontario, Canada.

Human movements associated with poultry farming create contact networks that might facilitate transmission of avian influenza (AI) between farms during outbreaks. In Canada, no information is available about how these networks connect poultry farms. The purpose of this study was to document human contacts between commercial poultry farms in Ontario, Canada, to learn how AI might be transmitted during outbreaks. We used face-to-face interviews with people entering the farm biosecurity perimeter on four layer, one turkey and three broiler breeder poultry farms in Ontario to collect information on between-farm contacts and biosecurity practices. Over a four-day study period on each farm, a median of 10.5 people entered the farm biosecurity perimeter (range 2-31). Ninety-six per cent (111/118) of people consented to be interviewed. Of these, fifty-three per cent (59/111) had contact with one or more (median 2, degree range 1-14) other poultry farms within 72 h. A median of 25 (range 7-65) human contacts linked study farms to other poultry farms. The mean distance of between-farm contacts was 53 km. Eighty-six per cent of people who answered the biosecurity questions (94/109) reported using one or more biosecurity practices. However, on 7/8 farms, at least one person reported that they did not use any biosecurity practices. Fifty per cent of social visitors used biosecurity, whereas 96% of all other people used biosecurity. Ninety-two per cent of people that entered the poultry barns (46/50) used one or more biosecurity practices, whereas 81% of people (48/59) that did not enter the poultry barns used one or more biosecurity practices. Because our study documented farm visitors who did not use any biosecurity practices and moved between commercial poultry farms, we suggest that rapid trace-out of human movements is as important as containment zoning to limiting disease spread during an outbreak of highly pathogenic AI in Ontario.

Comparison of the temporal kinematics of the canter pirouette and collected canter.

The objectives were to compare the temporal characteristics of canter pirouette strides with collected canter strides in elite dressage horses, and to determine whether the stride kinematics of the canter pirouettes fulfilled the requirements specified in the Federation Equestre Internationale Rules for Dressage Events. Eleven horses were videotaped (60 fields/s) during the individual medal competition at the 1992 Olympic Games. Temporal variables were extracted from the videotapes using standard methods. Two strides were analysed on each of the left and right leads and these were pooled to give mean values for the collected canter and the pirouettes. The pirouettes were completed in 4-9 strides, (mean of 6.4). In the collected canter strides, mean duration of the suspension was 0.013 s. There was no suspension in any of the pirouette strides, instead the stance phases of the leading forelimb and trailing hindlimb overlapped by a mean of 0.163 s. In 9 horses the trailing forelimb contacted the ground before the diagonal leading hindlimb in the collected canter, whereas in the pirouettes the leading hindlimb always made contact before the trailing forelimb (mean dissociation 0.164 s), giving the strides a distinct 4 beat rhythm. Due to increases in advanced placement between the diagonal limb pair and between the 2 forelimbs, the stride duration was longer in the pirouette (0.879 s) than the collected canter (0.629 s). It is concluded that the canter pirouette strides did not maintain the rhythm and timing of the the collected canter strides in any of the 11 horses.