Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis equine neurology wiley. Treating equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm the. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm, predominantly caused by the protozoa saracocystis neurona, is a common neurologic disease in horses from north america. Equine protozoal myeloenencephalitis epm is one of the most important neurologic diseases in the horse and remains a problem for horses and their owners. More than 50 percent of all horses in the united states may have been exposed to the organism that causes epm. The disease is one of the most commonly diagnosed neurological disorders of horses in the united states.
Equine protozoal myelitis epm extended version 3 refs. If epm disease is diagnosed and treated early, the statistics rise to 80% responding well to treatment, with many recovering fully. Equine obviously refers to the horse, protozoal refers to the type of organism that causes the disease and myeloencephalitis refers to that portion of the animal, which is damaged. Classically, horses present with asymmetric ataxia and weakness defined by multifocal central nervous system lesions. Horses become infected by ingesting contaminated food or water. A positive serum igg result means that the horse has been exposed to the causative parasite. Equine internal medicine consulting, 3288 valhalla dr. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm equine toxoplasma gondii. Clinical diagnosis of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm martin furr, robert mackay, david granstrom, harold schott ii, and frank andrews equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm has been widely described in the veterinary literature. Investigation of immune response to sarcocystis neurona infection in horses with equine protozoal myeloencephalitis jibing yang abstract equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a serious neurologic disease of horses in the united states.
Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm, is a disease caused by the apicomplexan parasite sarcocystis neurona that affects the central nervous system of horses. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a nervous system disease caused by the protozoan sarcocystis neurona. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm testing cornell. Treating equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm epm has been around for a long time, and the horses in the united states seem to have developed some immunity to the disease. Sarcocystis neurona is most often associated with epm and not usually present in muscle, while s fayeri produces muscular sarcocystis ems, which elicits inflammation and associated clinical signs. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis college of veterinary. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis or epm is a very serious disease that can oftentimes mimic other health problems in horses. Defining relapses attributed to equine protozoal myeloencephalitis. Epm was first discovered in the 1960s by the american biologist dr. The standard of practice for diagnosis is to perform a complete neurological exam, accompanied.
The protozoan sarcocystis neurona is most commonly associated with epm. All horses are thought to be susceptible to epm, however not all horses that are infected show clinical signs of disease. It is most commonly caused by the parasite sarcocystis neurona and more rarely by neospora hughesi. A clinical laboratory sample submission form fillable pdf must be included with each.
School of veterinary medicine forms and guidelines. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis is an important infectious disease of horses in this country. Clinical diagnosis of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm. Pdf equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm remains an important neurologic disease of horses. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis in horses symptoms.
Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is the most common neurologic disease seen in horses referred to ohio state. Occurrence of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm in the u. Saracocystis neurona, is a common neurologic disease in. The clinical syndrome caused by the disease can have a variety of presentations. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a serious disease of horses, and its management continues to be a challenge for veterinarians. Even in appropriately treated horses it can be a progressive, debilitating neurological disease. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis vtechworks virginia tech. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm may 6, 2020 update.
An update on sarcocystis neurona infections in animals and. Introduction equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a neu. It is caused by either of 2 parasites, sarcocystis neurona and neospora hughesi. Consistent with the geographic range of the opossum definitive hosts, epm caused by s. Overview equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a potentially fatal neurologic disease in horses caused by sarcocystis neurona or neospora hughesi. Most horses exposed to the causative organism, sarcocystis neurona, will clear any infection with their own immune system. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is the most common neurologic disease in horses with multifocal or asymmetric neurologic deficits. The protozoan most commonly associated with epm is sarcocystis neurona.
Because lesions may be multifocal in the spinal cord or brain, neurologic signs may indicate. Overview of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis nervous. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis equine neurology. The primary etiologic agent is sarcocystis neurona s. Lameness, colic, and equine protozoal myeloencephalitis. Request pdf immune response to sarcocystis neurona infection in naturally infected horses with equine protozoal myeloencephalitis equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is one of the most.
Immunohistochemical study to demonstrate sarcocystis. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a progressive, degenerative neurological disease of the central nervous system that has been described in horses for over 30 years. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is one of the most important neurologic diseases in the horse. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm, predominantly caused by the protozoa. Over the past several years work has been directed at better understanding this disease problem in. Most horses with a diagnosis of epm outside this region. Prevention of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm aaep. Infection of the central nervous system with protozoan parasites sarcocystisneuronaand neosporahughesi progressively debilitating disease opossums shed infective sporocysts in their feces. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a common neurologic disease of horses.
The horses that i see with severe symptoms, such as getting down and unable to rise. You, the owner, can make the difference in where your horse falls in the statistics, by learning prevention and to identify symptoms. Significant advances for both management and treatment strategies will not be made without improvements in the recognition of acute disease in the horse. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis, or epm, is one of the most common neurological diseases affecting the horse.
Affected horses can have focal or multifocal central nervous system cns disease. Although the disease is relatively common, we know little about how an underlying infection, sarcocystis neurona, affects disease progression or the way an affected horses immune system fights the disease. Includes a real example of a suspected case of epm. Prevention of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm ivis. The therapeutic compositions comprise a combination of pyrimethamine and a sulfonamide, preferably, sulfadiazine, in the absence of known therapeutic amounts of trimethoprim. Reference of health management for horses and highlighted diseases pdf 794kb 599 equine 98 part iii. However, in the presence of accompanying clinical signs that are characteristic of epm, a positive serum is supportive of an epm diagnosis. Decoquinate combined with levamisole reduce the clinical. The standard of practice for diagnosis is to perform a complete neurological exam, accompanied by laboratory tests that detect an immunological response to infection. It is caused by the protozoan parasite, sarcocystis neurona and less commonly neospora hughesi. In fact, more than 10% of equine cases presented to the veterinary medical center at ohio state have neurologic disease. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis what is equine protozoal myeloencephalitis.
Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a master of disguise. Equine exposure to the parasite occurs frequently as the protozoa is excreted in opossum didelphis virginiana feces and contaminates the horses environment. The disease is endemic in horses living in north and south america. Sarcocystis neurona in equine myeloencephalitis 419 table 1. Summary equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a commonly diagnosed neurologic condition of the horse that was originally described. Diclazuril and equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm. However, in horses with a compromised immune system, the. The present invention relates to compositions and methods for treating equines, such as horses, afflicted with equine protozoal myeloencephalitis or epm. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a common neurologic disease of horses in the americas. In other countries, epm is seen sporadically in horses that previously have spent time in the americas. Number of equine necropsies, cases involving neurologic disease, and cases diagnosed as equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm with presence of sarcocystis neurona using hematoxylin and eosin he and avidinbiotin complex abc immunoperoxidase methods at the laboratory of large animal pathology.
Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm remains an important neurologic disease of horses. Sarcocystis neurona is most often associated with epm. Your horses symptoms can range from mild to severe, making it difficult for veterinarians to properly diagnose epm right away. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a commonly diagnosed neurologic condition of the horse that was originally described in 1964 by j. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis masterson method. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm testing why test.
Pronunciation of myeloencephalitis with 1 audio pronunciation and more for myeloencephalitis. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a disease of horses that affects the central nervous system. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis epm is a serious neurological disease of horses in the americas. There are no pathognomonic clinical signs for the disease. The disease is considered rare, though recently, an increasing number of cases have been reported.