Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Diagnosis of Borrelia-associated uveitis in two horses.
- Journal:
- Veterinary ophthalmology
- Year:
- 2012
- Authors:
- Priest, Heather L et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences · United States
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
This study looked at two horses that had uveitis, which is inflammation of the eye, linked to a bacteria called Borrelia burgdorferi, the same bacteria that causes Lyme disease. While Lyme disease is not commonly diagnosed in horses, it can lead to various health issues, including eye problems. In these cases, the diagnosis was confirmed by finding the bacteria in the eye fluids and using a special test called PCR. The findings highlight that Lyme disease should be considered when diagnosing eye inflammation in horses, especially in areas where Lyme disease is common. The study suggests that testing the eye fluids might be more reliable than blood tests for confirming active Lyme infection in these situations.
Abstract
Borrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease is a tick born spirochetal infection. Clinical signs of Lyme borreliosis are uncommon in horses, but when present they are often vague and nonspecific. In horses, Lyme borreliosis has been implicated in musculoskeletal, neurological, reproductive, and ocular disorders, including uveitis, but definitive diagnosis can be challenging as the causative agent is rarely isolated and serologic tests can be unreliable and do not confirm active disease. Here, we report two cases of equine uveitis associated with B. burgdorferi based on the identification of spirochetes within ocular fluids and confirmed with PCR testing. The two cases illustrate some of the challenges encountered in the recognition and diagnosis of equine Lyme borreliosis. Although only one of many possible causes of equine uveitis, Lyme disease should be considered a differential diagnosis, especially in endemic areas. Given the possibility for false negative results of serum tests during uveitis associated with B. burgdorferi and the failure of such tests to confirm active infection, a combination of cytologic assessment, antibody, and/or PCR testing of ocular fluids may be worthwhile if the clinical suspicion for Lyme uveitis is high.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22360730/