Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
An outbreak of eosinophilic bronchitis in horses possibly associated with Dictyocaulus arnfieldi infection.
- Journal:
- Equine veterinary journal
- Year:
- 1979
- Authors:
- MacKay, R J & Urquhart, K A
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
In a group of eight adult horses, all of which had been coughing a lot for six weeks, tests showed a high number of certain white blood cells called eosinophils in their tracheal mucus. These horses were living on irrigated pasture and were not being fed hay. A young donkey that lived with them was found to be shedding larvae of a parasite called Dictyocaulus arnfieldi in its droppings. After giving the horses two doses of a medication called thiabendazole, their coughing improved, and the eosinophils disappeared from their mucus samples. This suggests that the horses' coughing was likely linked to the donkey's parasite infection.
Abstract
Eight mature horses which had been affected with a moist cough for six weeks were found to have large numbers of eosinophils in tracheal mucus samples taken by transtracheal washing. These horses were kept on irrigated pasture and fed a hay-free diet. A companion yearling donkey was found to be passing Dictyocaulus arnfieldi larvae in its faeces. Two oral treatments with a dose of thiabendazole (440 mg/kg) resulted in the resolution of the clinical signs and the disappearance of eosinophils from transtracheal washings. The eosinophilic bronchitis seen in these horses was presumed to be a manifestation of prepatent D arnfieldi infestation.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/157874/