Genitrix is offering practices a specially designed dosing wheel to ensure the accurate administration of Libromide (potassium bromide), the company's treatment for refractory canine epilepsy.
The wheel indicates the dosage required according to the bodyweight of the dog and also provides further information regarding managing epilepsy and bromide serum testing.
Rob Watkins, Marketing Director at Genitrix, said: "We've consulted canine neurology experts in the design of our dosing wheel and hope it will give practices reassurance and clarity on how to initiate, maintain and review the control of canine epilepsy with Libromide. Following the launch of Libromide and the discounted blood test service, the dosing wheel is an additional initiative to help improve treatment approaches for canine epilepsy."
To receive a free dosing wheel or for more information on Libromide and the discounted blood test service, practices are asked to call Genitrix' head office on 01403 786345 or contact their account manager.
The supermarket Morrisons is to launch new pet food packaging which will alert shoppers to the ideal portion size their cat or dog should be eating, in a bid to tackle the UK's growing pet obesity problem.
Morrisons is the first supermarket to add portion control guidance to the front of their pet food packaging, and it follows research from Petplan which found that 36% of all dogs and 29% of cats treated by vets are obese. In addition, 71% of vets agree that cases of obesity are continuing to rise.
Each packet of Morrisons pet food will provide the correct portion for a healthy weight pet and, according to the company, the packaging will communicate the amount of servings each product provides clearly.
Apparently, 70% of owners believe that their dog or cat has never been overweight, which shows that there is a level of confusion amongst owners as to how much their pet is eating. A further 83% do not even worry about giving their pet too much food. Morrisons is aiming to make it easier for pet lovers to ensure their animal doesn't put on any unnecessary weight especially with Christmas just around the corner and the temptation of being fed leftovers and treats.
According to vets asked by Petplan there are five main reasons for an obesity problem amongst household pets. They are:
John Cannan, New Product Development Manager for Pet Food at Morrisons said: "We've had feedback from our customers which says that they are often in the dark about how much food they should be buying and giving their pet. Our new packaging will ensure that shoppers have a clearer sense of portion sizes whilst also saving them some pennies"
Brian Faulkner Petplan Vet of the Year said: "It's great to see Morrisons taking the lead on this and helping shoppers make more informed decisions about what they are feeding their pet. Whilst it's normal to give your animal a treat every now and then, pets do need to follow healthy regimes just like we do. Keeping your pet fit and healthy will ultimately save you money on veterinary bills as well."
To improve our understanding of the attitudes of vets to treating OA pain, a survey is being conducted in seven countries across Europe (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and the UK) by a group of top European veterinarians.
The Pain Expert Panel intends to publish the results for each country and also the combined European results. These publications will allow comparisons to be made between countries and types of practices.
In addition, individual vets will be able to compare their own behaviours with the findings of the survey. It is hoped that the results will highlight any areas where continuing education would be beneficial and also topics for clinical research.
The survey is web based, completely anonymous and should take no more than 20 minutes to complete. Access details are as follows:
Website: www.painsurvey.net Password: pain
There is no right or wrong answer; your opinion is the only thing that matters.
The members of the European Expert Panel on Canine Osteoarthritis are: Dr. Bernard Bouvy (Fr), Prof. Stuart Carmichael (UK), Dr. Emilio Feltri (It), Prof. Jean-Pierre Genevois (Fr), Prof. Herman Hazewinkel (NI), Prof. John Innes (UK), Prof. Martin Kramer (Ge), Prof. Duncan Laschelles (USA), Dr. Carlos Macias (Sp), Dr. Sabine Tackle (Ge), Dr. Peter Vandekerckhove (Be)
Each year the WSAVA Congress is held in a different location around the world and attracts over 70,000 veterinary professionals who relish the opportunity to hear from top international speakers on all aspects of practicing small animal veterinary medicine.
The WSAVA is an international network of associations dedicated to the continuing development of companion animal care around the world. It brings veterinary practitioners and academia together to help enhance the knowledge of specific topics, such as hereditary disease and nomenclature of pathological processes.
To celebrate the Association's 50th anniversary Professor Michael J Day, chairman of the WSAVA Scientific Advisory Committee, has proposed that this year be the year of 'One Medicine'. The theme is intended to recognise the importance of the link between the medical and veterinary professions. It will encompass the human population, domestic animals and wildlife, and the impact that current environmental changes are having on these groups. Lectures and seminars during this year's congress will reflect the 'One Medicine' topic, looking for an exchange of ideas and to build the foundations for future developments of mutual interest. For further information please visit http://www.wsava2010.org/.
Veterinary staff can enter the WSAVA prize draw by visiting Petplan at stand 311 during the BSAVA Congress or via the dedicated Petplan veterinary staff website, petplanvet.co.uk.
The University of Bristol’s School of Veterinary Sciences has announced the launch of an online map-based tool which forecasts the risk of a Nematodirus outbreak in lambs.
The Nematodirus risk map, which will be updated daily, is designed to help UK sheep farmers assess the risk of outbreaks of the parasite in their lambs and take action before it is too late. It includes treatment and management advice.
The online risk forecast was developed by SCOPS (Sustainable Control of Parasites in Sheep) and researchers at the University of Bristol’s School of Veterinary Sciences to predict when Nematodirus eggs will hatch and when outbreaks are likely to happen.
Researchers say that predicting when outbreaks might happen is becoming increasingly difficult due to variation in spring temperatures from year to year. Farmers can no longer rely on a standard timetable of treatments to avoid disease. As the damage is done by the larvae, faecal egg counts are of little use in detecting and controlling Nematodirus in young lambs.
The forecast takes advantage of the temperature-driven synchronised hatching of the Nematodirus larvae and uses weather data from 140 weather stations provided by the Met Office and Forecast.io. The interactive Google map allows farmers and advisers to select the nearest or most representative weather station and provides advice on how to relate the predicted risk to their particular farm and treatment options.
Cases of nematodirosis and eggs detected in routine faecal worm egg counts will also be mapped anonymously as they arise to improve the forecasts and SCOPS are asking farmers, advisors and diagnostic labs to contribute to these records by emailing researcher Dr Hannah Rose at the University of Bristol’s Vet School.
Dr Rose said: "In previous years 64 per cent of farmers and advisors surveyed changed the timing or extent of treatment – or advised treatment - after consulting the forecast, which has been running since 2013, and 93 per cent felt that their approach to control of this parasite had changed as a result of the forecast."
UK Government funding provided by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council has enabled further development of the forecast and it is hoped that even more farmers will benefit in 2016.
Picture: A Romney sheep with its lambs, courtesy Dr Eric Morgan, University of Bristol
The presentation comes in the form of an editable Powerpoint presentation which can be downloaded from www.training-progress.com (visit 'downloads').
Laura Shaw from Training-Progress said: "Most of our clients are PSS accredited practices. Getting the practice accredited is a great achievement and the whole team should be aware of this and ‘singing it from the roof tops’. The resource outlines why PSS is good for the practice, the clients, the patients and the practice team - helping team members to promote it."
Training-Progress is a training management system and communication tool to support a practice through PSS accreditation. It includes features such as ensuring processes are in place; sharing information; implementing change in processes and reporting systems which provide evidence for accreditation and allow concentration of training resources.
The guides have been developed for vet teams to share with their clients and work through together, so that both sides are on the same page about owner values, pet welfare and behaviour, and diagnosis and treatment options.
A member of the veterinary team and the client can then work together to make decisions and provide quality care.
One of the pet owners who helped develop the guides said: “I always get so worked up with vet consultations that I forget half of what they say, or feel like I didn’t tell them enough about my pet’s history.
"If the vet used these guides at my next consult, they would make me feel very at ease indeed!”
Pam Mosedale, Clinical Lead at RCVS Knowledge, said: “These guides offer a simple, actionable way to help deliver contextualised care in practice.
"To get started, run through the questions in the guide with a client, and see how this can help you devise a treatment plan with the information you’ve discovered.
"This helps you gain a fuller understanding of your patient’s care and wellbeing needs and your client’s circumstances and expectations.
"Ultimately, this will assist you in delivering quality care that aligns with the needs and expectations of your clients.”
There are three contextualised care discussion guides:
RCVS Knowledge is encouraging veterinary teams to adapt the guides to meet their individual needs.
https://rcvsknowledge.org/contextualisedcare
COMMENT
Anything which helps clear communication between the owner and vet is surely to be applauded, and if owners are prepared to spend the time completing the pre-consultation guide, it would surely leave less room for error.
However, arguably the greatest cause of friction between owners and vets is cost, and that is something only mentioned fleetingly, in the context of: 'Are there any other factors that may impact on the care of your pet? e.g planned holidays or financial concerns'.
Isn't it time to stop beating around the bush?
Isn't there an opportunity here for greater clarity over the level of spending a client is happy with?
Is there an acceptable form of words here to ascertain whether - regardless of whether they have financial concerns or not - the client is one of those who wants the cheapest solution to the problem, one for whom money is no object, or someone who sits somewhere in the middle?
Wouldn't that be more instructive than almost anything else?
DISCUSS HERE
A 2001 graduate of University College Dublin School of Veterinary Medicine with an RCVS Certificate in Small Animal Surgery, Rob has worked for many years in general and referral practice and as clinical director of a large hospital in York.
He is also a qualified HR professional and holds an MBA from York Business School.
Since 2016, Rob has worked with VetPartners in management roles, with a focus on graduate programmes management, colleague engagement and career development.
In a career spanning almost 25 years, Dr Williams has also been actively involved with veterinary and academic organisations in various voluntary roles, including as a member of BVA’s Member Benefits Committee for five years; board member for the Society of Practicing Veterinary Surgeons; member of the RCVS VetGDP sub-committee; and member of the University of York Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Body.
He is currently a member of the advisory board at York Business School.
The Society of Practising Veterinary Surgeons (SPVS) has joined forces with the Professional Development Foundation (PDF) to revolutionise higher veterinary education in the UK.
The two organisations – SPVS through its Masters and Doctors Group (MDG) – have officially announced that they will deliver the new modular Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice (CertAVP) and the CertAVP (VetGP) qualifications through the new Vet Learning group.
SPVS recognised that vets were finding it difficult, if not impossible, to combine working in practise with completing the old-style certificates and decided to work with the RCVS to create more flexible and relevant qualifications and the PDF to provide more guidance and support.
Students taking the Vet GP qualification will also work from a syllabus that firmly complements the experience of the practising modern vet.
Richard Hillman, SPVS President Elect and SPVS CertAVP project leader, explained: “I registered for the RCVS Certificate in Welfare and Ethics three years ago as, as a practice owner, I am very interested in these fields but have found it very difficult to juggle work, home life and study.”
He added: “I’ve been on the CPD and I’ve read the books so I’ve done the personal development parts of the certificate but I just can’t get the cases written up. If I had the structure, support and mentoring that the SPVS and Vet Learning will now supply, I could have gone on and got the qualification I wanted. I am delighted that Vet Learning has now been created.”
Both qualifications will be assessed at MSc level and will be quality controlled by the University of Middlesex and the national Quality Assurance Agency (QAA). SPVS will shortly announce the date of a road show that will supply practitioners with further information on this ground-breaking development in veterinary education, including how to structure their CPD.
If you had purchased £1000 of Northern Rock shares one year ago they would now be worth £4.95; with HBOS, earlier this week your £1000 would have been worth £16.50; £1000 invested in XL Leisure would now be worth less than £5; but if you bought £1000 worth of Tennents Lager one year ago, drank it all, then took the empty cans to an aluminium re-cycling plant, you would get £214.
So based on the above statistics the best current investment advice is to drink heavily and re-cycle.
Vetoquinol UK is offering vets and nurses the opportunity to win a day's free CPD by entering its new Marbocyl® P Challenge.
The challenge runs for three months with a prize each month for a veterinary surgeon's one day CPD voucher worth £300 and a nurse's one day CPD voucher worth £200 from Improve CPD. There are also 10 runners up goodie bags available each month.
Each challenge focuses on knowledge of fluoroquinolones. July's challenge involves use in pyoderma, August's challenge focuses on respiratory tract infections and September's challenge will be on canine urinary tract infection.
Russell Roan, Vetoquinol's Veterinary Services Manager said: "Fluoroquinolones are an often-discussed antibiotic in the veterinary and medical world, but all too often they are mentioned as a class rather than as the individual molecules. This can cause the common misconception that all fluoroquinolones are the same. The Marbocyl® P Challenge aims to address this misconception and to highlight the varied uses for fluorquinolones."
To enter, visit http://www.vetoquinol.co.uk/, click on the Marbocyl® P Challenge banner at the top of the home page and complete the short quiz.
A survey by Hill's Pet Nutrition has concluded that nine out of ten vet professionals believe UK pets are at serious risk of diet related diseases, mirroring the trends seen in human health, and the recession has increased the risk.
The study of more than 100 veterinary professionals suggests their daily case loads are weighed down with a host of serious man-made dietary-related problems including obesity, diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure, simply because owners are not feeding their pets appropriately. These problems are on the increase as a result of owners switching to lower quality food or feeding a man-made diet of crisps and chocolate.
Pet Obesity Task Force Committee Member and Veterinary Nutritionist, Dr Daniel Chan, DVM, DACVECC, DACVN, MRCVS said: "As a nation, our modern lifestyles of fast food, large food portions, and too little exercise are taking a toll on our health, our children's health, and now our pet's health. Excessive calories and lack of physical activity are leading to alarming rates of obesity, which has become the most common form of malnutrition in pets today. As the links between obesity and disease are becoming clearer, it is vital that pet owners adopt healthier practices such as feeding appropriate portions of food, avoiding too many snacks and treats, and exercise with their pets."
Despite obesity being the most physically obvious diet-related disease in the UK, the vet professionals who participated in the study agreed unanimously that owners do not realise their much-loved but overweight pet is actually suffering from malnutrition.
The vet professionals were also in agreement that not all pet foods are the same, believing to some degree you get what you pay for. Yet worryingly, 83% of vet professionals believe our pet's health has been another casualty of the economic downturn, as cutbacks in the family budget saw trading-down on pet food. Vets suggest the effects of these cutbacks will lead to increases in cases of diet related diseases in the next two years, with a surge in potentially fatal conditions such as diabetes (61%), intestinal problems and pancreatitis (66%).
Adrian Pratt BVSc MRCVS, Hill s Pet Nutrition Veterinary Affairs Manager, said: The results make sombre reading. Almost all (98%) of the vet professionals who participated report seeing a host of preventable diseases in practice which are the result of inappropriate feeding. While obesity tends to be caused by an excess of empty calories and too little exercise, inadequate nutrients or excess nutrients like salt, will also affect a pet s general health and wellbeing, leading to sickness or long-term diet-related diseases.
Other findings of the study included:
Featuring imagery of the Great Barrier Reef to demonstrate that the skin barrier is a fragile ecosystem needing care and protection, the new marketing material includes:
The pack is supported by a new vet detailer focusing on the skin as a complex and fragile ecosystem, with a detachable poster covering the range.
For further information on the Douxo range of products, visit www.douxo.eu or contact your local Ceva Animal Health territory manager.
Bayer Animal Health has signed a deal to sponsor GMTV's pet clinic to promote its market-leading wormer, Drontal.
Running from Monday 16 February to Friday 20 February, the pet clinic will feature TV vet Emma Milne advising viewers on the health and welfare of their pets.
The pet clinic slots will run twice a day throughout the week on GMTV and Drontal will be featured in the end credits. The advertising will target the product's core target audience - housewives with children - with key messages on the importance of regular worming with Drontal. In addition, GMTV will also include details on Drontal on its website - www.gm.tv, where pet owners will be able to follow a link to www.drontal.com.
Dan White, Drontal's product manager said: "By sponsoring GMTV's pet clinic, Bayer is highlighting the benefits of worming and encouraging pet owners to regularly worm their pets. The advertising features the iconic schnauzer (the face of Drontal's "Worms? Absolutely Not!'' campaign) and will serve to drive clients into practices asking for Drontal. This will not only result in healthier dogs and cats but also ultimately reduce the environmental reservoir of eggs."
VetSurgeon member Howard Wilder, founder and managing director of British veterinary pharmaceutical company Genitrix, has been named Director of the Year at the 2010 Institute of Directors' London and South East Director of the Year Awards.
Genitrix provides treatments and therapies for pets and horses, and has just launched Libromide, the UK's first licensed formulation of potassium bromide, used in the treatment of canine epilepsy. Howard won the award in the category for businesses with a turnover of up to £4.99 million.
Howard said: "I founded Genitrix in 1998 and it's undoubtedly my greatest achievement. From scratch, and in just 12 years, we've become one of the top 20 companies in the veterinary pharmaceutical sector and compete strongly with multi-million dollar global corporations.
"I'm absolutely thrilled to have won. It's recognition both of the success of Genitrix and for me personally. I've worked very hard to make Genitrix the best run business in the sector and this confirms that I'm heading in the right direction."
Vet Futures, the joint initiative by the RCVS and BVA to stimulate debate about the future of the profession, is running an essay competition with a prize of an all-expenses-paid trip to the London Vet Show (London Olympia, 19th-20th November).
To win, you need to submit an essay of 1000 words or less which outlines an idea that will transform the veterinary/veterinary nursing profession by 2030. The College suggests that entrants might might look at a new business model, a new approach to education, a technological innovation or perhaps a way that the working lives of those in the practice team could be improved.
Anyone with an interest in the veterinary profession can enter the competition, including veterinary surgeons, nurses, practice managers and students.
The entries will be judged by the Vet Futures Project Board, which includes the Presidents and Chief Executives of both the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and the British Veterinary Association.
Entries will be anonymised then scored on a range of criteria, including originality, potential impact for the future and realistic prospects of change. The winning entry will be placed in a time capsule, to be opened by the veterinary profession in 2030.
The closing date for entries is midnight on Monday 31 August 2015, and the winner will be notified on Monday 7 September 2015.
The full rules and details of how entries can be submitted can be found on www.vetfutures.org.uk/essaycomp.
Bayer Animal Health has launched its annual tick awareness campaign, this year titled 'No Bite is Right', with results of a survey which found that 44% of pet owners don't use regular preventative tick treatment.
The OnePoll survey of 4000 pet owners, which was conducted on behalf of the company in January, also found that 60% of pet owners are worried about ticks spreading disease to their pet, and 28% have found one.
As part of the 'No Bite is Right' campaign, owners are being encouraged to speak to their veterinary surgeon about using preventative tick products to help reduce the risk of their pet becoming infected by tick-borne diseases.
Jenny Helm, University of Glasgow Veterinary Clinician, said: "In recent years I have noticed and been made aware from owners and other vets, of a steady rise in tick numbers across the country. With this there is an increased risk of potentially fatal tick-borne diseases being transmitted to pets. However, if a tick can be killed before it bites, this avoids the risk and provides vital protection to the pet."
Richard Wall, Professor of Zoology at Bristol University, said: "Research has shown that in recent years, tick abundance has increased and the period of seasonal activity has extended in many areas. Climate change, particularly warmer, wet winters have had direct effects on tick feeding as well as impacting indirectly on vegetation cover and creating a more suitable habitat. The increase in deer numbers, habitat modification by conservation and changes in farming practices have also all contributed to the growth in numbers."
Stella Huyshe-Shires, from charity Lyme Disease Action, says: "Lyme Borreliosis is a rapidly emerging disease in the UK and a number of experienced healthcare professionals believe the increase in reported cases reflects a genuine rise over the last 20 years, and not just increased awareness leading to more diagnosis. There appears to have been an increase in ticks and, in turn, an increase in the prevalence of Lyme borreliosis in ticks."
'No Bite Is Right' is part of Bayer Animal Health’s wider 'It’s a Jungle Out There' parasite protection initiative. A series of campaign roadshows for pet owners will be taking place this year at the Ayr, Devon and New Forest County Shows. You can find out more about how your practice can get involved with the campaign by following the conversation on www.facebook.com/jungleforpets and downloading campaign materials at www.vetcentre.bayer.co.uk.
The latest addition to the Bayer portfolio of educational websites for pet owners was launched this week and to mark the occasion, there are 5 digital cameras and photo frames to be won by vets and nurses.
Targeted specifically at cat owners, with a dedicated section for vets and nurses, http://www.profender.co.uk/ aims to educate owners about the importance of worming their cats and visiting their vets.
Pet owners visiting the site will be able to profile their cat to determine the optimum worm treatment regime. To help improve compliance, owners can also subscribe to a free SMS or email reminder service to alert them when a worming treatment is due.
The vet- and nurse-only section of the website contains a wealth of information, including animated worm lifecycles and details on Profender Spot-On, its formulation and mode of action.
To enter the competition to win a digital camera and photo frame, you just need to answer three questions. Click here.
Ceva Animal Health has announced two additional dates and locations for its ‘Building Success Around the Fertility Routine Visit’ CPD days for young vets.
Part of Ceva’s reprodAction programme, the courses are intended for recent graduates, or those new to dairy practice.
The two upcoming meetings, listed on VetSurgeon.org's new RSVP-enabled CPD & Events Diary, are to be held at The Best Western Dryfesdale Hotel in Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway on 22nd September and the West Lancashire Investment Centre in Skelmersdale, Lancashire on 23rd September.
The company says that the courses adopt a novel ‘physiology first’, practical approach to managing cattle reproduction, and have been set up to support vets in performing routine fertility visits. They cover various topics including: identifying clients’ goals, setting herd targets and increasing pregnancy rates.
Katherine Timms, Veterinary Advisor at Ceva, said: “We have had such positive feedback from the previous events, it has encouraged us to organise more, giving vets from other areas in the UK an opportunity to attend”.
“Routine fertility visits often intimidate recent graduates, as they are normally performed solo, with little or no support. This can make it hard for vets to build confidence, which this course addresses by not only providing knowledge but also by vets who are at the same stage in their careers to interact and share experiences.”
An attendee of the course held in April, Amy Cox from Nantwich Farm Vets, spoke about her highlights of the event, saying: “It really gave me the confidence in my own knowledge of cow reproduction and helped me build on what I’d already got.
“The lecturers were really engaging and the content was highly interactive which I feel helps you learn more. This is the second reprodAction CPD course that I’ve been on so I would recommend them”.
Paddy Gordon, Director of Shepton Veterinary Group, is one of the leaders of the event. He said: “Cattle reproduction CPD can be complex and is usually theory based; these events aim to cover the basics and most importantly, how to implement it all practically. This includes how to communicate concepts to farmers, through group discussion and role play and how to implement treatment protocols practically.”
Vets who are interested in attending either of the upcoming reprodAction Young Vet Initiative CPD courses can apply via Ceva Territory Managers, Bryan Hamilton on 07753 447226 or bryan.hamilton@ceva.com for the Lockerbie meeting and Kimberly Campbell on 07831 359128 or kimberly.campbell@ceva.com for the Skelmersdale meeting.
And if you're going, don't forget to use the RSVP facility on VetSurgeon.org to let other members know you'll be there.
A survey carried out by Cats Protection has found that around a quarter of Britain's cats (23%) are being fed treats despite the fact that their owners consider them overweight already.
The survey of 1,120 cat owners revealed that 70% of cats described as 'slightly' or 'very overweight' are given a special food treat at least once a week by their owners. 28% of them are being given a special treat at least once a day.
The survey also found that all cats - irrespective of their weight - are fed special treats over Christmas that are not suitable for their health. Nearly 8% feed their cats a special Christmas dinner consisting of human food, whilst some cats are given chocolate (2%) stuffing (2%), and Christmas pudding (1%).
Maggie Roberts, Cats Protection's Director of Veterinary Services, said: "The survey showed that Britain's overweight cats continue to be fed too many treats, which owners principally did out of love, habit or a desire to make their cat feel like a member of the family. However, overweight cats are at significant risk of diabetes and arthritis so there is the danger that owners are making a bad situation even worse.
"The survey also shows that it wasn't uncommon for cats to be given treats such as milk, chocolate or cheese. All of these could make cats quite ill."
The HT Vista device is used by vets and vet nurses to screen dermal and subcutaneous masses on dogs.
The company says that with a negative predictive value of 98% clinicians can confidently classify a mass as benign without the need of further invasive tests.
HT Vista also says that, according to a recent client survey, the main features which practices value are the nurse-led ability which is maximising nurse clinics and streamlining efficiency, justification in sampling masses even when they feel innocuous, and the rapid speed of image acquisition and results.
To be in with a chance of winning the device and subscription, delegates must attend the 15-minute Ultra Demo at stand B300 on Friday 22nd March at 4pm.
Ticks infected with the bacteria that cause Lyme disease may be considerably more prevalent in the UK than recent estimates indicate, according to new research from the University of Bristol that used pet dogs as 'sentinels' for human disease risk.
Transmitted by ticks, Lyme disease is a debilitating chronic infection which affects a number of animals including humans and dogs. It is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. Clinical signs in humans include a characteristic circular red rash that spreads from the site of the tick bite, followed by a flu-like condition. In dogs, the symptoms can be much more vague and difficult to diagnose. If untreated, the disease progresses to neurological problems and arthritis; chronic forms of the disease can last for many years.
While only occasionally affecting humans, reported cases in the UK are thought to have increased more than fourfold since the beginning of the century - from 0.38 per 100,000 in 2000 to 1.79 per 100,000 in 2009. In 2010 there were 953 reported cases in England and Wales but the level of under-reporting is likely to be considerable.
To obtain a clearer picture of the prevalence of infected ticks, Faith Smith of Bristol's School of Biological Sciences and colleagues recruited veterinary surgeons across England, Scotland and Wales to examine dogs selected at random as they visited veterinary practices. Since pet dogs largely share the same environment and visit the same outdoor areas as their owners, exposure to infected ticks in dogs is likely to provide an index for corresponding risks to humans.
Of 3,534 dogs inspected between March and October 2009, 14.9% had ticks. Of the samples that could be tested, 17 (2.3%) were positive for the Borrelia bacteria. The expected prevalence of infected ticks on dogs is 0.5 per cent, or 481 infected ticks per 100,000 dogs. This suggests that the prevalence of Borrelia in the UK tick population is considerably higher than previously thought.
Faith Smith said: "Lyme disease appears to be a rapidly growing problem in the UK with important health and economic impacts in terms of loss of working hours and potential decrease in tourism to tick hotspots.
"Without considerably better surveillance and routine diagnostic testing, Lyme disease is only likely to become more prevalent. In particular, future warmer winters might well extend the period over which ticks are active seasonally, while growing wild reservoir host populations, such as deer, will allow the tick population to expand."
The study is published today in the journal Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. The research was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and Merial Animal Health Ltd.
Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica has released data which shows that one third of laminitic middle aged horses (between the ages of 10 and 15 years) test positive for PPID (Cushing's)1.
Over 3,100 horses were tested for Cushings as part of the company's 'Talk about Laminitis' campaign during the spring.
Liz Barrett, equine sales and marketing manager at Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica said: "Although the common perception is that PPID is a disease of only older horses and ponies, the ageing process is progressive and this data from over 330 participating veterinary practices1 indicates that horses and ponies in the 10 to 15 age bracket are also frequently affected."
The company is urging veterinary surgeons to test laminitic or foot-sore horses for PPID this autumn, as this is when there is a greater difference between horses with PPID and those free of the disease2, 3. In support of this, Boehringer will be re-launching its disease awareness initiative 'Talk About Laminitis', with free ACTH blood tests* during September, October and November. To participate in the scheme, veterinary surgeons can download free ACTH blood test vouchers from http://www.talkaboutlaminitis.co.uk/.
Dr Catherine McGowan BVSc DipVetClinStud MACVSc PhD DEIM DipECEIM FHEA MRCVS from the University of Liverpool, said: "It is very important to test horses for PPID the first time they present with laminitis because what we want to avoid is recurrence of that laminitis. If it does reoccur, the damage will be worse and the chances of that horse having a successful long-term recovery will be diminished."
For further information on 'Talk About Laminitis', PPID or Prascend, visit www.talkaboutlaminitis.co.uk, contact your Boehringer territory manager or call 01344 746959.
References