2014 - 83 (5)

Tijdens de post-mortemkeuring en het versnijden van een rund worden grijsgroene ovalespierletsels vaak als sarcosporidiosis bestempeld, terwijl de morfologische diagnose bovieneeosinofiele myositis is. Deze verwarring in terminologie kan niet alleen financiële implicatieshebben, maar leidt ook tot het invoeren van incorrecte gegevens in Europese databanken. Ditartikel vat de huidige kennis samen omtrent Sarcocystis en boviene eosinofiele myositis bij hetrund, als pleidooi voor een correct gebruik van de terminologie.

A 5.5-year-old Beagle was evaluated for abnormal swallowing and a head tilt of a two-weeksduration. Inspection of the throat and external ear canal revealed an intact but abnormallybulging eardrum. Computed tomographic (CT) examination showed a right-sided tympanicbulla filled with soft-tissue density material, a partially lytic ventral wall and lysis of the petrosalpart of the temporal bone. Through ventral bulla osteotomy, sterile cholesterol granuloma andcholesteatoma were diagnosed. The dog recovered but the head tilt re-appeared eight monthsafter surgery. A new CT scan showed expanded lysis of the tympanic wall and increased bone lysiswithin the petrosal portion of the temporal bone. The owner elected for no further treatment.Another two years later, a third CT scan was performed. Prominent intracranial involvementwas present. In contrast to the extent and the progression of the changes, the dog was clinicallystable.     

Although real-time ultrasonography is feasible in awake cats, cats are frequently anesthetizedwith propofol, if they are uncooperative or during perioperative ultrasonographic examinations.Propofol induces hypotension in cats and may cause venous vasodilation that redistributesblood volume in abdominal organs and organomegaly. In this paper, ultrasonographic adrenalmeasurements are compared before and during intravenous propofol anesthesia in healthycats. No significant effect of propofol anesthesia on adrenal size was found, and the observeddifferences were small and clinically irrelevant. Therefore, it can be concluded that propofolanesthesia does not prevent ultrasonographic diagnosis of adrenomegaly.

Insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) is an allergic reaction to the bites of certain Culicoides spp.or other insects. In this study, risk factors for IBH in Belgian warmblood horses stabled or grazingin Flanders (Belgium) were investigated. IBH records (n=3409) were collected in 2009 and2011 using a questionnaire and face-to-face interviews. The classification of IBH-affected versusunaffected horses was based on the owner’s statement, and the reported IBH lifetime prevalencewas 10%. Thirty eight percent of IBH affected horses had no clinical symptoms at the time ofquestioning. When only the presence or absence of clinical symptoms at the time of questioningwas taken into account, the prevalence of IBH symptoms was 6.2%. Seventy percent of IBH-affectedhorses were treated with IBH measures to reduce clinical symptoms. Model selection wasbased on backwards elimination in a logistic regression framework starting with 17 factors. Theage of the horse, vegetation of surrounding pasture and stud size were found to be significantlyassociated with the self-reported IBH status.

Portal vein hypoplasia (PVH) is a congenital disorder, in which microscopic intrahepaticshunts are present, causing blood to bypass the liver sinusoids. As the clinical presentation andthe laboratory findings are similar to those in dogs with an extrahepatic portosystemic shunt(EHPSS), differentiation between both disorders is based on the confirmation of a macroscopicshunt by diagnostic imaging techniques. This review highlights the major aspects of PVH, includingthe differentiation from EHPSSs, and the challenges to diagnose both disorders in dogswith concurrent PVH and EHPSS.

In dit artikel worden gedetailleerde studies over antimicrobiële resistentie van commensale E. colibij varkens, runderen, pluimvee en vleeskalveren en pathogene E. coli bij varkens en runderenin België beschreven voor 2011. Bij commensale E. coli-isolaten van pluimvee en vleeskalverenwerd een hogere prevalentie van antimicrobiële resistentie vastgesteld dan bij isolaten van varkensen runderen. Vijftig procent van de E. coli-isolaten van vleeskuiken was resistent tegen ten minstevijf antimicrobiële middelen, terwijl 61% van de isolaten van runderen gevoelig was voor allegeteste antibiotica. Daarentegen vertoonden pathogene E. coli-isolaten van runderen een uitgebreidresistentieprofiel, met resistentie tegen tien of meer antimicrobiële middelen bij meer dan de helft vande isolaten. De resultaten zijn niet significant verschillend van de resultaten van eerder gepubliceerdestudies over commensale bacteriën bij varkens en vleeskuikens in België, hoewel er verschillendemethoden van bemonstering en gevoeligheidstesten werden gebruikt.

Given the risks associated with antimicrobial resistance and its link with antimicrobial use,available data on antimicrobial use in the Belgian pig, broiler and veal calf production werecompared. Allowing for comparison of the data available from three peer-reviewed scientificarticles, the unit of measurement for antimicrobial use was the Treatment Incidence (TI), definedas the number of animals per 1000 treated daily with one ‘defined’ (DDDA) or ‘used daily doseanimal’ (UDDA). Moreover, extrapolation of farm-level data to national-level data was attemptedaccording to the European Surveillance of Veterinary Antimicrobial Consumption (ESVAC)methodology, to estimate the amount of antimicrobials used in Belgium per species. Although,among the three species, the highest TI was observed in veal calves (TIDDDA=414, TIUDDA=379),based on the extrapolation, it was estimated that most antimicrobials were administered topigs (159.4 tons). Thus, the most rapid decline in the total use could potentially be achieved bytargeting the pig sector. During the process of data collection for comparison and calculation, itbecame obvious that there is a need for harmonized monitoring programs.