Equine influenza in Australia: a clinical overview

Abstract

The clinical symptoms observed during the 2007 equine influenza outbreak are compared and contrasted with those observed in overseas outbreaks and described in the veterinary literature.

Overview of the epidemiology of equine influenza in the Australian outbreak

“…The Australian horse population was fully susceptible to EI, except for a small number of horses vaccinated for overseas travel. The clinical signs that were observed have been described in detail elsewhere, 8 but the morbidity rate in the exposed Australian horse population was very high 9 . The seroprevalence at a statewide level in NSW has been described by Dhand and Sergeant 9 and at particular locations in both NSW and QLD 10,11 .…”

A Systematic Review of Recent Advances in Equine Influenza Vaccination

“…Vaccination in face of an EI outbreak could significantly reduce the size of an epidemic [ 142 ]. The use of the canarypox-based EI vaccine was a contributing factor for the successful control of the 2007 EI outbreak in Australia and facilitated a return to normal racing and breeding conditions [ 126 , 143 , 144 ]. The possibility to use an EIV NP-specific ELISA to differentiate infected animals from vaccinates (DIVA) and the effective use of this vaccine during the 2003 South African EI outbreaks were important element in the selection of an EI vaccine during this outbreak [ 145 ].…”

Surveillance of equine influenza viruses through the RESPE network in France from November 2005 to October 2010

“…Equine influenza virus (EIV) is considered the most economically important equine respiratory pathogen owing to its contagious nature and its potential to disrupt equestrian events . Rapid diagnosis of EIV is essential if the timely isolation of infected animals and imposition of movement restrictions are to limit the dissemination of the virus.…”