| 1. |
- Berndtson, E., et al.
(author)
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A 1-year epidemiological study of campylobacters in 18 Swedish chicken farms
- 1996
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 26:3-4, s. 167-185
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Broiler chickens are often intestinal carriers of Campylobacter. During processing, Campylobacter may be spread over the carcass. Thus, undercooked chicken meat, or other foods contaminated by raw chicken can act as a source of infection to humans. This study was conducted to identify risk factors for chicken flocks being colonized with Campylobacter. Eighteen chicken farms with altogether 62 chicken compartments were studied for 1 year with visits during each growing period and sampling of chicken caecal contents at slaughter. Four to six subsequent flocks were raised in each compartment during the study. A detailed questionnaire was used to record farm parameters such as building materials, feed and water equipment, hygiene and management routines. Campylobacter prevalence varied between farms, between growing periods within the farms and also during the year, with lowest prevalence during the spring. Campylobacters were isolated from 27% out of 287 flocks. Only two farms were negative at all samplings. Often the flock following a positive flock in a compartment was negative, indicating that normal cleaning and disinfecting routines are sufficient for eliminating the bacteria from the house. Usually only one serotype was found in each positive flock. Campylobacter occurrence increased with the age of the chickens at slaughter, and also with flock size.Univariable chi-square tests were done of the association between possible risk factors and Campylobacter prevalence. Factors associated with higher Campylobacter prevalence in flocks were lack of or diffuse hygiene barriers, increasing flock size, increasing age at slaughter, short vs. long empty periods, wet litter beds, other poultry nearby or staff handling other poultry, flocks divided before slaughter, staff loading to slaughter at several farms and occurrence of mice. Under Swedish conditions, water does not seem to be a source of infection for chickens. Origin and handling of day-old chickens, feed additives, houses and litter were not associated with higher Campylobacter prevalence.
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| 2. |
- Alvåsen, Karin, et al.
(author)
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Risk factors associated with on-farm mortality in Swedish dairy cows
- 2014
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 117, s. 110-120
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Dairy cow mortality (unassisted death and euthanasia) has increased, worldwide and in Sweden. On-farm mortality indicates suboptimal herd health or welfare and causes financial loss for the dairy producer. The objective of this study was to identify cow-level risk factors associated with on-farm cow mortality. Cows with at least one calving between 1 July 2008 and 30 June 2009 from herds enrolled in the Swedish official milk recording scheme with >40 cow-years were included. Each cow was followed from the day of calving until she calved again or left the herd (died, slaughtered or sold). The effects of potential risk factors on on-farm cow mortality were analysed using a Weibull proportional hazard model with a gamma distributed frailty effect common to cows within herd. The event of interest (failure) was euthanasia or unassisted death. An observation was right censored if the cow was slaughtered, sold, calved again or had an on-going lactation at 500 days after calving. The lactations were split into seasons (January to April, May to August and September to December) and at 30 and 100 days in milk in order to evaluate seasonal effects and the effect of disease in different lactation stages. Primiparous and multiparous cows were analysed separately. The highest hazards for both primiparous and multiparous cows were found for traumatic events and diseases, both in the lactation stage in which the cow died and in the preceding stage. The hazard was higher in early lactation and lower in 2nd parity compared to higher parities. Increased age at first calving (for primiparous cows), calving between January and April, dystocia and stillbirth also increased the mortality hazard. Differences were also found between breeds, between milk production parameters at first test milking and between management types. The results from this study show the importance of good management and preventive health actions, especially around calving, to avoid mortality in dairy cows. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 3. |
- Andrée O´ Hara, Elisabeth, et al.
(author)
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An observational study of the dry period length and its relation to milk yield, health, and fertility in two dairy cow breeds
- 2020
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 175
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study evaluated associations between dry period length (DPL) in dairy cows and energy-corrected milk (ECM) production, health, and fertility, using a dataset involving 78 577 lactations in cows of two breeds, Swedish Red (SR) and Swedish Holstein (SH). Herds with at least 20 cows and at least 20 % purebred SR and at least 20 % SH during the year 2015/2016 were included in the dataset. Cows were divided into parity groups 2 and 3 or older and DPL was classified into six 10-day groups (30-39 to 80-89 d). Associations between DPL and the outcome variables were assessed with linear and generalized linear mixed models. Production of ECM at the first three test milkings and the 305-d lactation was highest in the 50-59 d and 60-69 d DPL groups, and lowest in the 30-39 d and 80-89 d groups (p<0.001). Mastitis and somatic cell count (SCC) did not differ between DPL groups, except at the third test milking, where cows in the 40-49, 50-59, and 60-69 DPL groups had lower SCC (p<0.001) than cows in the 70-79 and 80-89 d groups. The odds ratio (OR) for retained placenta was 1.9 for cows with 30-39 d DPL relative to cows with 60-69 d DPL. Cows in DPL groups 40-49 d and 50-59 ha d the lowest odds of culling (OR=0.89 and 0.92). The OR for culling in cows with DPL 70-79 d and 80-89 was 1.2 and 1.4, respectively, relative to cows with 60-69 d DPL. The conception rate at first insemination did not among between DPL groups. The SR cows produced less ECM than the SH cows, but had lower SCC and lower OR for mastitis, retained placenta, puerperal paresis, and culling within 90 DIM. Although DPL <40 days or >80 days reduced milk production in early lactation and the 305-d lactation, the estimated additional milk production in the preceding lactation in cows with short DPL compensated for this reduction. A DPL of 40 days did not affect health and fertility in comparison with a conventional 60 d DPL, while a DPL of >70 d was unfavorable due to low milk production, increased risk of culling, and decreased fertility. The response to DPL was not affected by breed or parity.
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| 4. |
- Aspán, Anna, et al.
(author)
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Longitudinal observational study over 38 months of verotoxigenic Escherichia coli O157: H7 status in 126 cattle herds
- 2015
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 121, s. 343-352
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Verotoxigenic Escherichia coli O157:H7 (VTEC O157:H7) is an important zoonotic pathogen capable of causing infections in humans, sometimes with severe symptoms such as hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). It has been reported that a subgroup of VTEC O157:H7, referred to as clade 8, is overrepresented among HUS cases. Cattle are considered to be the main reservoir of VTEC O157:H7 and infected animals shed the bacteria in feces without showing clinical signs of disease. The aims of the present study were: (1) to better understand how the presence of VTEC O157:H7 in the farm environment changes over an extended period of time, (2) to investigate potential risk factors for the presence of the bacteria, and (3) describe the distribution of MLVA types and specifically the occurrence of the hypervirulent strains (clade 8 strains) of VTEC O157:H7. The farm environment of 126 cattle herds in Sweden were sampled from October 2009 to December 2012 (38 months) using pooled pat and overshoe sampling. Each herd was sampled, on average, on 17 occasions (range = 1-20; median = 19), at intervals of 64 days (range = 7-205; median = 58). Verotoxigenic E. coli O157:H7 were detected on one or more occasions in 53% of the herds (n= 67). In these herds, the percentage of positive sampling occasions ranged from 6% to 72% (mean = 19%; median = 17%). Multi-locus variable number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA) typing was performed on isolates from infected herds to identify hypervirulent strains (clade 8). Clustering of MLVA profiles yielded 35 clusters and hypervirulent strains were found in 18 herds; the same cluster was often identified on consecutive samplings and in nearby farms. Using generalized estimating equations, an association was found between the probability of detecting VTEC O157:H7 and status at the preceding sampling, season, herd size, infected neighboring farms and recent introduction of animals. This study showed that the bacteria VTEC O157:H7 were spontaneously cleared from the farm environment in most infected herds over time, and key factors were identified to prevent the spread of VTEC O157:H7 between cattle herds.
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| 5. |
- Backhans, Annette, et al.
(author)
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Alternatives to the use of antimicrobial agents in pig production: A multi-country expert-ranking of perceived effectiveness, feasibility and return on investment : A multi-country expert-ranking of perceived effectiveness, feasibility and return on investment
- 2015
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 118, s. 457-466
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Nineteen alternatives to antimicrobial agents were ranked on perceived effectiveness, feasibility and return on investment (ROI) from 0 (not effective, not feasible, no ROI) to 10 (fully effective, completely feasible, maximum ROI) by 111 pig health experts from Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland.The top 5 measures in terms of perceived effectiveness were (1) improved internal biosecurity, (2) improved external biosecurity, (3) improved climate/environmental conditions, (4) high health/Specific Pathogen Free/disease eradication and (5) increased vaccination. The top 5 measures in terms of perceived feasibility were (1) increased vaccination, (2) increased use of anti-inflammatory products, (3) improved water quality, (4) feed quality/optimization and (5) use of zinc/metals. The top 5 measures in terms of perceived ROI were (1) improved internal biosecurity, (2) zinc/metals, (3) diagnostics/action plan, (4) feed quality/optimization and (5) climate/environmental improvements. Univariate linear regression showed that veterinary practitioners rank internal biosecurity, vaccination, use of zinc/metals, feed quality optimization and climate/environmental on average highest, while researchers and professors focused more on increased use of diagnostics and action plans. Financial incentives/penalties ranked low in all countries. Belgian respondents ranked feed quality significantly lower compared to the German respondents while reduction of stocking density was ranked higher in Belgium compared to Denmark. Categorical Principal Component Analysis applied to the average ranking supported the finding that veterinary practitioners had a preference for more practical, common and already known alternatives.The results showed that improvements in biosecurity, increased use of vaccination, use of zinc/metals, feed quality improvement and regular diagnostic testing combined with a clear action plan were perceived to be the most promising alternatives to antimicrobials in industrial pig production based on combined effectiveness, feasibility and ROI. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 6. |
- Backhans, Annette, et al.
(author)
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Herd-specific interventions to reduce antimicrobial usage in pig production without jeopardising technical and economic performance
- 2017
-
In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 144, s. 167-178
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Pig farmers are strongly encouraged to reduce their antimicrobial usage in order to reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance. Herd-level intervention is needed to achieve national and European reduction targets. Alternative, especially preventive measures, have to be implemented to reduce the need for antimicrobial treatments. However, little is known about the feasibility, effectiveness and return on investment of such measures. The objective of this study was to assess, across four countries, the technical and economic impact of herd-specific interventions aiming at reducing antimicrobial usage in pig production while implementing alternative measures.An intervention study was conducted between February 2014 and August 2015 in 70 farrow-to-finish pig farms located in Belgium, France, Germany and Sweden. Herd-specific interventions were defined together with the farmer and the herd veterinarian. Farms were followed over one year and their antimicrobial usage and technical performance were compared with values from the year before intervention. Compliance with the intervention plan was also monitored. Changes in margin over feed cost and net farm profit were estimated in a subset of 33 Belgian and French farms with sufficient data, using deterministic and stochastic modeling.Following interventions, a substantial reduction in antimicrobial use was achieved without negative impact the overall farm technical performance. A median reduction of 47.0% of antimicrobial usage was achieved across four countries when expressed in terms of treatment incidence from birth to slaughter, corresponding to a 30.5% median reduction of antimicrobial expenditures. Farm compliance with intervention plans was high (median: 93%; min-max: 20; 100) and farms with higher compliance tended to achieve bigger reduction (rho = -0.18, p = 0.162). No association was found between achieved reduction and type or number of alternative measures implemented. Mortality in suckling piglets, weaners and fatteners, daily weight gain and feed conversion ratio did not significantly change over the course of the study, while the number of weaned piglets per sow per year slightly increased. The median change in net farm profit among Belgian and French farms was estimated to be (sic)4.46 (Q25-Q75:-32.54; 80.50) and (sic)1.23 (Q25-Q75:-32.55; 74.45) per sow per year using the detererministic and stochastic models, respectively. It was more influenced by a change in feed conversion ratio and daily weight gain than by a change in antimicrobial expenditures or intervention direct net cost. Therefore, costs of alternative measures should not be perceived as a barrier, but rather as an opportunity to optimise production practices for sustained productivity and improved animal health. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 7. |
- Backhans, Annette, et al.
(author)
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Perceptions of antimicrobial usage, antimicrobial resistance and policy measures to reduce antimicrobial usage in convenient samples of Belgian, French, German, Swedish and Swiss pig farmers
- 2015
-
In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 119, s. 10-20
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We conducted a survey among convenient samples of pig farmers (N=281) in Belgium, France, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland. We identified some significant differences among the five investigated countries (independent variable) regarding farmers' antimicrobial usage compared to their own country and worries related to pig farming (dependent variables), but most of the differences were rather small. In general, farmers perceived their own antimicrobial usage to be lower than that of their peers in the same country and lower than or similar to that of farmers from other countries. This may be a consequence of our convenience sample, resulting in self-selection of highly motivated farmers. Farmers were significantly more worried about financial/legal issues than about antimicrobial resistance. They believed that a reduction in revenues for slaughter pigs treated with a large amount of antimicrobials would have the most impact on reduced antimicrobial usage in their country. Further, farmers who were more worried about antimicrobial resistance and who estimated their own antimicrobial usage as lower than their fellow countrymen, perceived more impact from policy measures on the reduction of antimicrobials. Our results indicated that the same policy measures can be applied to reduce antimicrobial usage in pig farming in all five countries. Moreover, it seems worthwhile to increase pig farmers' awareness of the threat of antimicrobial resistance and its relation to antimicrobial usage; not only because pig farmers appeared little worried about antimicrobial usage but also because it affected farmers' perception of policy measures to reduce antimicrobial usage. Our samples were not representative for the national pig farmer populations. Further research is therefore needed to examine to what extent our findings can be generalised to these populations and to farmers in other countries. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 8. |
- Bett, B, et al.
(author)
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Effects of climate change on the occurrence and distribution of livestock diseases.
- 2017
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 137:Pt B, s. 119-129
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The planet's mean air and ocean temperatures have been rising over the last century because of increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These changes have substantial effects on the epidemiology of infectious diseases. We describe direct and indirect processes linking climate change and infectious diseases in livestock with reference to specific case studies. Some of the studies are used to show a positive association between temperature and expansion of the geographical ranges of arthropod vectors (e.g. Culicoides imicola, which transmits bluetongue virus) while others are used to illustrate an opposite trend (e.g. tsetse flies that transmit a range of trypanosome parasites in sub-Saharan Africa). We further describe a positive association between extreme events: droughts and El Niño/southern oscillation (ENSO) weather patterns and Rift Valley fever outbreaks in East Africa and some adaptation practices used to mitigate the impacts of climate change that may increase risk of exposure to infectious pathogens. We conclude by outlining mitigation and adaptation measures that can be used specifically in the livestock sector to minimize the impacts of climate change-associated livestock diseases.
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| 9. |
- Björkman, Camilla
(author)
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Seroprevalence and spatial distribution of Neospora caninum in a population of beef cattle
- 2009
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 92, s. 116-122
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A cross-sectional serological survey for Neospora caninum was carried out in Swedish beef cattle in order to estimate the seroprevalence and investigate any geographical patterns of the infection. Blood samples were collected from 2754 animals in 2130 herds and analysed for presence of antibodies to N. caninum. The study included 18.5% of all Swedish beef herds. Spatial autocorrelation was assessed by calculating Moran's I and cluster detection was performed using LISA- and spatial scan statistics. The seroprevalence of N. caninum was 2.8% (95% Cl: 2.18-3.44). Positive samples were found only in the southern half of Sweden. Moran's I was positive (I=0.045, p < 0.01) and indicated global spatial autocorrelation. Using the spatial scan test based on a Bernoulli model, a cluster comprising 16 postal code areas and including 19 seropositive animals was identified. The results indicate that there is a cluster of higher risk of N. caninum (relative risk = 3.95) in the southern part of Sweden, in the counties of Kronoberg and Skane. This is the first report on the seroprevalence of N. caninum in beef cattle in Sweden. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 10. |
- Blanco Penedo, Isabel, et al.
(author)
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Assessing, and understanding, European organic dairy farmers’ intentions to improve herd health
- 2016
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 133, s. 84-96
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Many believe the health status of organic dairy herds in Europe should be improved to meet consumers' and legislators' expectations to improve animal welfare. This paper reports on a study in four countries that examined dairy farmers' intentions towards improving the health status of their organic herds through the use of the Theory of Planned Behaviour. It was found that farmers across the countries were positive about taking additional preventative measures to improve the health status of their herds. They believed this would not only improve herd physical performance, such as milk yield and fertility, but also achieve greater cost effectiveness and improved job satisfaction for them.Most study farmers would implement a tailored package of improvement measures designed by the study team with higher uptake most likely being by younger farmers, those who make greater use of veterinarians and professional advisory services, and those supplying specialist milk-marketing chains. Furthermore, farmers will be most likely to take-up additional health promotion if compatible with their everyday activities and if they have strong business performance goals aimed at maximising the physical performance of the herd.
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| 11. |
- Blanco Penedo, Isabel, et al.
(author)
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Farm-specific failure costs of production disorders in European organic dairy herds
- 2019
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 168, s. 19-29
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- On-farm decision support in animal health management requires a tailor-made failure costs (FCs) assessment of production disorders for the individual farm. In our study we defined a generic framework to estimate the FC of production disorders in dairy cows. We converted the framework to a practical tool in which the farm-specific FC of mastitis, ketosis, lameness and metritis were estimated for 162 organic dairy farms in four European countries. Along with the structure of the framework, the FC estimation required three distinct types of model input: performance input (related to herd performance parameters), consequential input (related to the consequences of the disorders) and economic input (related to price levels). Input was derived from official herd recordings (e.g. test-day records and animal health recordings) and farmers' responses (e.g. questionnaire replies). The average FC of mastitis, ketosis, lameness and metritis amounted to (sic) 96, (sic) 21, (sic) 43 and (sic) 10 per cow per year, respectively. The variation in FC outcomes was high among farmers and countries. Overall ranking of the disorders based on absolute values was the same for all countries, with mastitis being the costliest disorder followed in order by lameness, ketosis, and metritis. Farm specific estimates can be used to rank production related disorders in terms of their associated failure costs and thus provide valuable insights for herd health management. The practical calculation tool developed in this study should be considered by farmers or herd health advisors to support their animal health practices or advice.
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| 12. |
- Bonestroo, John, et al.
(author)
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The costs of chronic mastitis: A simulation study of an automatic milking system farm
- 2023
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 210
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Mastitis is a production disease in dairy farming that causes economic losses. Especially chronic mastitis (i.e., mastitis cases continuing longer than 28 days) can substantially affect the risk of transmission of intramammary infections (IMI) and total milk production losses. Insights into the impact of chronic mastitis on production and farm economics are needed to guide chronic mastitis decision-making. We aimed to estimate the costs of chronic mastitis with a Monte Carlo simulation model in which the costs of chronic mastitis were estimated as part of the total mastitis costs. The model simulated milk yields, IMI dynamics, somatic cell count (SCC), and pregnancy status on an average Dutch dairy farm with 100 cow places over 9 years. The model was parameterized using information from the literature and actual sensor data from automatic milking system (AMS) farms. The daily subclinical milk production losses were modeled using a generalized additive model and sensor data. Transmission of IMI was modeled as well. The model results indicated median total costs of mastitis of euro 230 per generic IMI case (i.e., a weighted average of all pathogens). The most substantial cost factors were the extra mastitis cases due to transmission, culling, and milk production losses. Other significant costs originated from dry cow treatments and diverted milk. The model also indicated median total costs due to chronic mastitis of euro 118 (51 % of the total mastitis costs). The share of chronic mastitis relative to the total mastitis costs was substantial. Transmission of contagious bacteria had the largest share among the chronic mastitis costs (51 % of the costs of chronic cases). The large share of chronic mastitis costs in the total mastitis costs indicates the economic importance of these mastitis cases. The results of the study point to the need for future research to focus on chronic mastitis and reducing its presence on the AMS dairy farm.
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| 13. |
- Chenais, Erika, et al.
(author)
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Co-created community contracts support biosecurity changes in a region where African swine fever is endemic – Part I: The methodology
- 2023
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 212
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In Northern Uganda more people live in poverty than elsewhere in the country. Small-scale pig-keeping is common and African swine fever (ASF) is endemic, spreading along the smallholder value chain. Biosecurity measures remain the only way to prevent and control the spread of ASF in this context. Previous research in the study area has shown that many stakeholders are aware of ASF, how it is spread and methods for prevention and control, but biosecurity implementation remains limited. Participatory approaches have been suggested in order to increase community engagement in relation to animal disease control, ensuring that disease prevention or control actions are guided by local people’s priorities and the promotion of local ownership of disease control. The objective of this study was to investigate the capacity of participatory action at community level with a broad inclusion of stakeholders to initiate change and greater stakeholder ownership to improve biosecurity in the smallholder pig value chain. Specific attention was paid to the feasibility of co-created community contracts for this purpose. The study was carried out in Northern Uganda in six purposively selected villages and included both farmers and traders. Centred on co-created community contracts on biosecurity, the study comprised repeated group discussions, semi-structured and structured group and individual interviews, as well as field observations. At the first meeting, participants were presented with suggested biosecurity measures adapted for farmers and traders respectively. Participants discussed each measure, agreed which ones to implement for one year, and co-created a community contract to this effect. During the study period, repeated interviews were undertaken and implementation support was provided. Interview data was coded and thematically analysed. Great diversity was observed between communities with regard to which and how many measures were selected, illustrating heterogeneity in the possibilities of biosecurity implementation and the complexity of livelihood challenges. The methodology appeared to be effective at instigating change, with all the communities changing some of their biosecurity behaviour during the study period. The intensified communication and cooperation around pigs in the communities reinforced the sense of group identity and the capacity-building offered at the first meeting supported implementation and appeared to be more important than the physical contract. Participants reported feeling empowered and described how they shared their knowledge, educated their peers and acted as catalysts for wider biosecurity change in their communities. These are promising results and indicate a positive attitude to both the agreed measures and the methodology.
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| 14. |
- Chenais, Erika, et al.
(author)
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Perceptions of pastoralist problems : A participatory study on animal management, disease spectrum and animal health priorities of small ruminant pastoralists in Georgia
- 2021
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 193
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Small ruminants support the livelihoods of millions of poor pastoralist and sedentary households around the world. While pastoralists are generally not amongst the poorest in terms of assets, they are frequently marginalised in terms of their access to political power, health and education. This study was undertaken among pastoralist households keeping small ruminants in four regions of the country of Georgia. Small ruminants are an important cultural, social and economic asset in Georgia and are mainly managed in a transhumant pastoralist system. Georgia suffered its first, and so far only outbreak of peste des petits ruminants (PPR) in 2016. This qualitative interview study was designed to acquire contextual understanding of local small ruminant husbandry and the livelihood situations of the participating pastoralists, and to detect historical, unreported PPR outbreaks. Focus group discussions comprising participatory epidemiology tools and other forms of interviews were used to explore small ruminant management, disease spectrum and management, and animal health priorities. The participants had experienced a wide variety of animal health constraints, with intestinal worms, braxy, piroplasmosis, pasture-related problems, predators and lameness emerging as priorities. No historic, unreported PPR outbreak was detected in this study, and PPR was not a priority for participants. Instead, the day-to-day reality of animal health for the pastoralists was characterised by co-infections of mainly endemic pathogens, and problems related to other challenges such as access to land, feed and genetic resources. The rationale behind the participants' prioritisation of animal health problems was supported by the need to pay extra attention to animals in order to avoid risk factors, keep animals healthy and minimise the negative impact of diseases or management problems; the various epidemiological and clinical parameters of the prioritised diseases; the economic impact of the specific problems and the zoonotic potential of diseases and predation. Even within regions, and within seemingly socially and culturally homogenous groups, there were important local differences in the problems faced by pastoralists that affect their livestock management. This study underlines the importance of a contextualised understanding of the local disease panorama and complexities in the livelihood situations of rural people when designing actions to improve animal health in general or, more specifically, passive surveillance as well as prevention or control measures. Finally, it is concluded that to achieve such an understanding, there is a need for participatory, scoping-style studies that specifically acknowledge diversity and power relations.
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| 15. |
- Chenais, Erika, et al.
(author)
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Quantitative assessment of social and economic impact of African swine fever outbreaks in northern Uganda
- 2017
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 144, s. 134-148
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- African swine fever (ASF) is one of the most important pig diseases, causing high case fatality rate and trade restrictions upon reported outbreaks. In Uganda, a low-income country with the largest pig population in East Africa, ASF is endemic.Animal disease impact is multidimensional and include social and economic impact along the value chain. In low-income settings, this impact keep people poor and push those that have managed to escape poverty back again. If the diseases can be controlled, their negative consequences can be mitigated. However, to successfully argue for investment in disease control, its cost-benefits need to be demonstrated. One part in the cost-benefit equations is disease impact quantification. The objective of this study was therefore to investigate the socio-economic impact of ASF outbreaks at household level in northern Uganda.In a longitudinal study, structured interviews with two hundred, randomly selected, pig-keeping households were undertaken three times with a six month interval. Questions related to family and pig herd demographics, pig trade and pig business.Associations between ASF outbreaks and economic and social impact variables were evaluated using linear regression models. The study showed that pigs were kept in extreme low-input-low-output farming systems involving only small monetary investments. Yearly incidence of ASF on household level was 19%. Increasing herd size was positively associated with higher economic output. The interaction between ASF outbreaks and the herd size showed that ASF outbreaks were negatively associated with economic output at the second interview occasion and with one out of two economic impact variables at the third interview occasion. No significant associations between the social impact variables included in the study and ASF outbreaks could be established. Trade and consumption of sick and dead pigs were coping strategies used to minimize losses of capital and animal protein.The results indicate that causality of social and economic impact of ASF outbreaks in smallholder systems is complex. Pigs are mostly kept as passive investments rather than active working capital, complicating economic analyses and further disqualifying disease control arguments based only on standard economic models. (C) 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
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| 16. |
- Churakov, Mikhail
(author)
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Assessing potential routes of Streptococcus agalactiae transmission between dairy herds using national surveillance, animal movement data and molecular typing
- 2021
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 197
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Streptococcus agalactiae, also known as group B Streptococcus (GBS), is a pathogen of humans and animals. It is an important cause of mastitis in dairy cattle, causing decreased milk quality and quantity. Denmark is the only country to have implemented a national surveillance and control campaign for GBS in dairy cattle. After a significant decline in the 20th century, prevalence has increased in the 21st century. Using a unique combination of national surveillance, cattle movement and molecular typing data, we tested the hypothesis that transmission mechanisms differ between GBS strains that are almost exclusive to cattle and those that affect humans as well as cattle, which would have implications for control recommendations. Three types of S. agalactiae, sequence type (ST) 1, ST23 and ST103 were consistently the most frequent strains among isolates obtained through the national surveillance programme from 2009 to 2011. Herds infected with ST103, which is common in cattle but rarely found in people in Europe, were spatially clustered throughout the study period and across spatial scales. By contrast, strains that are also commonly found in humans, ST1 and ST23, showed no spatial clustering in most or any years of the study, respectively. Introduction of cattle from a positive herd was associated with increased risk of infection by S. agalactiae in the next year (risk ratio of 2.9 and 4.7 for 2009–2010 and 2010–2011, respectively). Moreover, mean exposure to infection was significantly higher for newly infected herds and significantly lower for persistently susceptible herds, as compared to random simulated networks with the same properties, which suggests strong association between the cattle movement network and new infections. At strain-level, new infections with ST1 between 2009 and 2010 were significantly associated with cattle movements, while other strains showed only some degree of association. Sharing of veterinary services, which may serve as proxy for local or regional contacts at a range of scales, was not significantly associated with increased risk of introduction of S. agalactiae or one of the three predominant strains on a farm. Our findings support the reinstatement of restrictions on cattle movements from S. agalactiae positive herds, which came into effect in 2018, but provide insufficient evidence to support strain-specific control recommendations.
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| 17. |
- Comin, Arianna, et al.
(author)
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Revealing the structure of the associations between housing system, facilities, management and welfare of commercial laying hens using Additive Bayesian Networks
- 2019
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 164, s. 23-32
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- After the ban of battery cages in 1988, a welfare control programme for laying hens was developed in Sweden. Its goal was to monitor and ensure that animal welfare was not negatively affected by the new housing systems. The present observational study provides an overview of the current welfare status of commercial layer flocks in Sweden and explores the complexity of welfare aspects by investigating and interpreting the inter-relationships between housing system, production type (i.e. organic or conventional), facilities, management and animal welfare indicators. For this purpose, a machine learning procedure referred to as structure discovery was applied to data collected through the welfare programme during 2010-2014 in 397 flocks housed in 193 different farms. Seventeen variables were fitted to an Additive Bayesian Network model. The optimal model was identified by an exhaustive search of the data iterated across incremental parent limits, accounting for prior knowledge about causality, potential over-dispersion and clustering. The resulting Directed Acyclic Graph shows the inter-relationships among the variables. The animal-based welfare indicators included in this study - flock mortality, feather condition and mite infestation - were indirectly associated with each other. Of these, severe mite infestations were rare (4% of inspected flocks) and mortality was below the acceptable threshold (< 0.6%). Feather condition scored unsatisfactory in 21% of the inspected flocks; however, it seemed to be only associated to the age of the flock, ruling out any direct connection with managerial and housing variables. The environment-based welfare indicators - lighting and air quality - were an issue in 5 and 8% of the flocks, respectively, and showed a complex inter-relationship with several managerial and housing variables leaving room for several options for intervention. Additive Bayesian Network modelling outlined graphically the underlying process that generated the observed data. In contrast to ordinary regression, it aimed at accounting for conditional independency among variables, facilitating causal interpretation.
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| 18. |
- Dohoo, Ian R., et al.
(author)
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Multiple imputation in veterinary epidemiological studies : A case study and simulation
- 2016
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 129, s. 35-47
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The problem of missing data occurs frequently in veterinary epidemiological studies. Most studies use a complete case (CC) analysis which excludes all observations for which any relevant variable have missing values. Alternative approaches (most notably multiple imputation (MI)) which avoid the exclusion of observations with missing values are now widely available but have been used very little in veterinary epidemiology. This paper uses a case study based on research into dairy producers' attitudes toward mastitis control procedures, combined with two simulation studies to evaluate the use of MI and compare results with a CC analysis. MI analysis of the original data produced results which had relatively minor differences from the CC analysis. However, most of the missing data in the original data set were in the dependent variable and a subsequent simulation study based on the observed missing data pattern and 1000 simulations showed that an MI analysis would not be expected to offer any advantages over a CC analysis in this situation. This was true regardless of the missing data mechanism (MCAR - missing completely at random, MAR - missing at random, or NMAR - not missing at random) underlying the missing values. Surprisingly, recent textbooks dealing with MI make little reference to this limitation of MI for dealing with missing values in the dependent variable. An additional simulation study (1000 runs for each of the three missing data mechanisms) compared MI and CC analyses for data in which varying levels (n = 7) of missing data were created in predictor variables. This study showed that MI analyses generally produced results that were less biased on average, were more precise (smaller SEs), were more consistent (less variability between simulation runs) and consequently were more likely to produce estimates that were close to the "truth" (results obtained from a data set with no missing values). While the benefit of MI varied with the mechanism used to generate the missing data, MI always performed as well as, or better than, CC analysis.
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| 19. |
- Dórea, Fernanda C., et al.
(author)
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Drivers for the development of an Animal Health Surveillance Ontology (AHSO)
- 2019
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 166:1, s. 39-48
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Comprehensive reviews of syndromic surveillance in animal health have highlighted the hindrances to integration and interoperability among systems when data emerge from different sources. Discussions with syndromic surveillance experts in the fields of animal and public health, as well as computer scientists from the field of information management, have led to the conclusion that a major component of any solution will involve the adoption of ontologies. Here we describe the advantages of such an approach, and the steps taken to set up the Animal Health Surveillance Ontological (AHSO) framework. The AHSO framework is modelled in OWL, the W3C standard Semantic Web language for representing rich and complex knowledge. We illustrate how the framework can incorporate knowledge directly from domain experts or from data-driven sources, as well as by integrating existing mature ontological components from related disciplines. The development and extent of AHSO will be community driven and the final products in the framework will be open-access.
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| 20. |
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| 21. |
- Egenvall, Agneta, et al.
(author)
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Analysis of morbidity and mortality data in riding school horses, with special regard to locomotor problems
- 2009
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 88, s. 193-204
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The incidence of disease, mortality and survival of horses, focusing on locomotor problems, at riding schools were studied, using data from an animal insurance database during 1997-2002. In total 5140 horses from 136 riding schools were included in the analysis. The overall yearly incidence rate (111) was 1584 events of veterinary care per 10,000 horse-years at risk (HYAR). The total and diagnostic mortalities were 790 and 763 deaths per 10,000 HYAR. Rates varied substantially among riding schools. For locomotor problems the rates were 1116 events of veterinary care and 524 deaths per 10,000 HYAR. Multivariable Cox proportional-hazards analysis was performed on horses enrolled in insurance during the study period, including riding schools as frailty effects. For the outcome veterinary care for locomotor problems, the hazard ratios (HR) increased with increasing life-insurance value and Swedish warmbloods and other horses had increased HR compared to ponies. In the model with outcome life claim because of locomotor problems the breed groups Swedish warmblood and other horses also had higher HR than ponies. Age at entry >= 8 years was associated with decreased HR for settled life-insurance cases due to locomotor problems and the two highest categories for insurance value had increased HR compared to the two lower categories. In the model with the outcome life claim because of previously claimed locomotor problems Swedish warmbloods had a higher HR than other horses and ponies. The HR increased by 33% for each year of age at entry. In south-urban areas of Sweden the HR was decreased compared to in all other areas, including baseline. Overall riding schools utilised the insurance more compared to all horses in the insurance database (similar to 22% for the veterinary-care insurance and similar to 79% for the settled life insurance). (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 22. |
- Egenvall, Agneta, et al.
(author)
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Days-lost to training and competition in relation to workload in 263 elite show-jumping horses in four European countries
- 2013
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 112, s. 387-400
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Orthopaedic, or other, injuries in sports medicine can be quantified using the ‘days-lost to training’ concept. Both the training regimen and the surface used in training and racing can affect the health of racehorses. Our aim was to associate ‘days-lost to training’ in elite-level show-jumpers to horse characteristics, training and management strategies, and the time spent working on various training and competition surfaces. We designed a longitudinal study of professional riders in four European countries. Data were recorded using training diaries. Reasons for days-lost were classified into non-acute and acute orthopaedic, medical, hoof-related, and undefined. We produced descriptive statistics of training durations, relative to type of training, surfaces used, and days-lost. We created zero-inflated negative-binomial random-effects models using the overall days-lost as outcome. In the whole dataset, duration variables related to training surfaces were analysed as independent. The Swedish data only were also used to test whether duration variables were related to competition surfaces. Thirty-one riders with 263 horses provided data on 39,028 days at risk. Of these, 2357 (6.0%) were days-lost (55% and 22% of these were due to non-acute and acute orthopaedic injuries, respectively) in 126 horses. In the all-country model, controlling for season, a significant variable was country. Switzerland and the UK had lower incidence-rate ratios (IR) compared to Sweden (IRs 0.2 and 0.03, respectively). Horses with previous orthopaedic problems had almost a doubled IR (1.8) of days-lost due to orthopaedic injury, compared to baseline. If the horse had jumping training more than 1 minute per day at risk the IRs were 6.9-7 (compared to less than this amount of time); this was, however, likely an effect of a small baseline. Variation in training was a protective factor with a dose-response relationship; the category with the highest variation had an IR of 0.1. In the Swedish model, controlling for season, there was an association of year (IR 2.8 year 2010). Further, if the horse rested >17-25% of the days at risk, or >33% of the DAR2, had IRs 3.5 and 3,0, compared to less time. Horses ≥6 years had IRs of 1.8-2.0, compared to younger horses. Limited training use of sand surface was a risk-factor (IR 2.2; >4≤12 min/day at risk), compared to not training on sand. Training/competing on sand-wood was a protective factor (IRs 0.4-0.5) compared to not using this surface.
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| 23. |
- Egenvall, Agneta
(author)
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Validation of the diagnosis canine epilepsy in a Swedish animal insurance database against practice records
- 2014
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 114, s. 145-150
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Canine epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions in dogs but the actual incidence of the disease remains unknown. A Swedish animal insurance database has previously been shown useful for the study of disease occurrence in companion animals. The dogs insured by this company represent a unique population for epidemiological studies, because they are representative of the general dog population in Sweden and are followed throughout their life allowing studies of disease incidence to be performed. The database covers 50% of all insured dogs (in the year 2012) which represents 40% of the national dog population. Most commonly, dogs are covered by both veterinary care insurance and life insurance. Previous studies have shown that the general data quality is good, but the validity of a specific diagnosis should be examined carefully before using the database for incidence calculations. The aim of the current study was therefore to validate the information contained in the insurance database regarding canine epilepsy. The validation focused on the positive predictive value and the data-transfer from the veterinary practice records to the insurance database. The positive predictive value was defined as the proportion of recorded cases that actually had the disease in question. The quality of the data-transfer was assessed by comparing the diagnostic codes in practice records to the codes in the insurance database. The positive predictive value of the diagnostic codes for canine epilepsy (combining "epileptic convulsions" and "idiopathic epilepsy") in the insurance database was validated in a cross-sectional study where insurance claims for canine epilepsy were compared to diagnostic information in practice records. A random sample of dogs with a reimbursed insurance claim during 2006 was included in the study sample (n = 235). Practice records were requested by mail from attending veterinarians. Two independent examiners scrutinized all the records. All 235 dogs were coded correctly in the database as they really had suffered seizures with or without convulsions, and the quality of the datatransfer was therefore excellent. In total, 167 dogs (71%) were classified as cases of canine epilepsy according to pre-defined criteria, and the positive predictive value was therefore considered relatively high. Based on these results, it was concluded that the data regarding canine epilepsy in the insurance database can be used for further population studies. (c) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 24. |
- Emanuelson, Ulf, et al.
(author)
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Management practices associated with udder health of first-parity dairy cows in early lactation
- 2009
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 88, s. 138-149
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study aimed at investigating associations between management routines including feeding, housing, and milking around calving, and udder health of first-parity cows in early lactation in Swedish large, high producing, low bulk-milk somatic cell count (SCC) dairy herds housed in free stalls. Seventy-two dairy herds participated and data concerning 1189 first-parity cows calving during the study period (October 2005-January 2006) was collected. Multivariable regression analysis were performed with three different outcomes; within-herd number of first-parity cows veterinary treated for clinical mastitis at days -10 to 60 after calving, within-herd number of first-parity cows with a SCC >= 200,000 cells/mL at first test-day, and SCC of first-parity cows at first test-day. Cow factors significantly associated with good udder health of first-parity cows (few cases of clinical mastitis and or low SCC) were being of the Swedish Red breed, having a high milk yield at first test-day, and a milk-urea >= 5 mmol/L at first test-day. Herd factors significantly associated with good udder health were having mattresses as flooring in the cubicles in the lactating cow housing, and to house the first-parity cows in tie stalls 1 month before calving. Cow factors significantly associated with poor udder health of first-parity cows were having a milk-urea <4 mmol/L at first test-day. Herd factors significantly associated with poor udder health of first-parity cows were feeding first-parity cows sugar-beet pulp or corn silage, and to give silage from a different batch to pregnant heifers than to lactating cows. Moreover, to have sawdust or shavings in the calving pen, to be moved from the calving pen >= 2 days after calving, to milk first-parity cows at the calving site instead of in the parlor, and to rinse, clean or disinfect milking units before a first-parity cow was milked were also significantly associated with poor udder health of first-parity cows. The results indicate that different control measures must be taken depending on the nature of the udder health problem. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 25. |
- Emanuelson, Ulf, et al.
(author)
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On-farm mortality and related risk factors in Estonian dairy cows
- 2018
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In: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 155, s. 53-60
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Mortality (unassisted death and euthanasia) reflects the health and welfare state of the cows and is associated with undesirable financial consequences for the farmer. The objective of this retrospective observational study was to identify risk factors associated with on-farm mortality in dairy cows. Data for a study period between January 1, 2013 and December 31, 2015 were retrieved from the Estonian Agricultural Registers and Information Board and Estonian Livestock Performance Recording, Ltd. Cows from milk-recording herds with >= 20 cow-years were included. Analyses included data of 86,459 primiparous cows from 409 herds and 109,314 multiparous cows from 410 herds. Cows were followed from the day of calving until exit from the herd due to on-farm death or euthanasia (defined as mortality), slaughter, or selling. Associations between risk factors and mortality were assessed using Weibull proportional hazard models.The mortality rate (MR) was lower in primiparous cows (MR = 5.09 per 100 animal-years, 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.93; 5.26) compared to multiparous cows (MR = 8.28 per 100 animal-years, 95% CI 8.13; 8.44). The early lactation period was associated with greater mortality hazard.Animal-level factors significantly associated with higher mortality hazard in primiparous and multiparous cows were Holstein breed, older age at first calving, having an assisted calving or stillborn calf. In multiparous cows, male sex of the calf, birth of twins/triplets, older parity, longer previous inter-calving interval and milk somatic cell count over 200,000 cells/ml at the last test-milking of the previous lactation were associated with greater mortality hazard. Lower milk yield, somatic cell count over 200,000 cells/ml and fat/protein ratio over 1.5 at first test-milking were associated with greater mortality hazard during the lactation.Cow mortality risk was greater in larger herds, in herds with lower cow conception rate and poorer longevity of cows. Also, lower herd average milk fat/protein ratio and decreasing herd size (for multiparous cows) as well as Northeast region were herd level risk factors.This study outlines the importance of herd management and good health of the cows at dry-off and during early lactation and ensuring easy calving to reduce mortality of cows.
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