Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Transmission of Streptococcus equi subspecies zooepidemicus infection from horses to humans.
- Journal:
- Emerging infectious diseases
- Year:
- 2013
- Authors:
- Pelkonen, Sinikka et al.
- Affiliation:
- Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
Streptococcus equi subspecies zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) is a type of bacteria that can cause serious infections in people who are around horses. In a study from 2011, three men in eastern Finland who worked with horses developed severe infections from this bacteria. Researchers looked at samples from both the men and the horses and found that the bacteria were very similar, suggesting that the infections likely came from the horses. This highlights the risk of getting sick from this bacteria when in close contact with horses, especially as more people engage in horse-related activities. Overall, the findings show that S. zooepidemicus can lead to serious health issues in humans.
Abstract
Streptococcus equi subspecies zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) is a zoonotic pathogen for persons in contact with horses. In horses, S. zooepidemicus is an opportunistic pathogen, but human infections associated with S. zooepidemicus are often severe. Within 6 months in 2011, 3 unrelated cases of severe, disseminated S. zooepidemicus infection occurred in men working with horses in eastern Finland. To clarify the pathogen's epidemiology, we describe the clinical features of the infection in 3 patients and compare the S. zooepidemicus isolates from the human cases with S. zooepidemicus isolates from horses. The isolates were analyzed by using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, multilocus sequence typing, and sequencing of the szP gene. Molecular typing methods showed that human and equine isolates were identical or closely related. These results emphasize that S. zooepidemicus transmitted from horses can lead to severe infections in humans. As leisure and professional equine sports continue to grow, this infection should be recognized as an emerging zoonosis.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23777752/