Attention: Veterinarians, Horse Owners & Stable Owners – Cross Contamination Found Between Horses & Humans

The U.S. Center for Disease Control, Ohio State University, Kentucky Equine Research & Ontario Veterinary College Veterinary Teaching Hospital Confirm MRSA in Equines & Humans Are Cross Contaminating.

Learn How to Protect Your Equine Partners, Patients & Staff from MRSA

 

Retrospective and pilot studies have clearly shown that MRSA is prevalent in the horse population arriving to the OSU – Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH) and the hospitals’ environment.

MRSA is becoming emerging equine pathogen.  It is also being found in dogs, cats, cattle, pigs, poultry and other animals with increasing frequency.

There is a growing concern within for public health & within the veterinarian community about MRSA  in equines.  Seeing this MRSA as a potential public health issue, the US Center for Disease Control (CDC) has conducted a study to see if there was a relationship in the colonization rates of horses and the people who worked with them.

Of the animals and people studied, 79 horses and 27 people were found to be either infected or colonized with MRSA.

34% of the horse isolates came from the veterinary hospital, while another 51% came from one thoroughbred farm. Of the human cases, 63% came from the veterinary hospital and 30% came from the farm.

OSU found 50% of their equine patients were infected with MRSA.

These results clearly indicates that MRSA is prevalent in the horse population arriving at the OSU-VTH, which represents a major health risk for our patients, clients, students, staffs, and faculty.

In this study, we propose to establish an active and passive surveillance system to monitor the hospital environment and equine patients admitted to OSU.

OSU concludes:

Even though we are just half way of the estimated time of this study, these preliminary results clearly indicate that MRSA is circulating in the environment and in incoming animals at the equine teaching hospital. Therefore, there is a potential threat of transmission to the animals (nosocomial infections) as well as the personnel working at the facility (zoonotic infections).

The information produced in this study is going to be extremely valuable in redesigning infectious disease prevention and control procedures in equine veterinary hospitals, as well as in creating an educational campaign focusing on the possible occupational risk that this zoonotic pathogen represents for people working with or around horses

Study conducted from 2009 to 2010

Ontario Veterinary College Teaching Hospital Studies MRSA

Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine .2006 Jan-Feb;20(1):182-6.

Abstract: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an emerging equine pathogen. To attempt to control nosocomial and zoonotic transmission, a MRSA screening program was established for all horses admitted to the Ontario Veterinary College Veterinary Teaching Hospital, whereby nasal screening swabs were collected at admission, weekly during hospitalization, & at discharge. MRSA was isolated from 120 (5.3%) of 2,283 horses: 61 (50.8%) at the time of admission, 53 (44.2%) during hospitalization, and 6 from which the origin was unclear because an admission swab had not been collected. Clinical infections attributable to MRSA were present or developed in 14 (11.7%) of 120 horses. The overall rate of community-associated colonization was 27 per 1,000 admissions. Horses colonized at admission were more likely to develop clinical MRSA infection than those not colonized at admission (OR 38.9, 95% CI 9.49 160, P < 0.0001). The overall nosocomial MRSA colonization incidence rate was 23 per 1,000 admissions. The incidence rate of nosocomial MRSA infection was at the rate of 1.8 per 1,000 admissions, with an incidence density of 0.88 per 1,000 patient days. Administration of ceftiofur or aminoglycosides during hospitalization was the only risk factor associated with nosocomial MRSA colonization. MRSA screening of horses admitted to a veterinary hospital was useful for identification of community-associated and nosocomial colonization and infection, and for monitoring of infection control practices.

Kentucky Equine Research Staff – November 19, 2012

MRSA has been identified with increasing frequency in recent years.

Humans, dogs, cats, horses, cattle, pigs, poultry and other animals can be affected by MRSA.

Approx. 25% of adults & children & about 5% of horses carry MRSA bacteria on their skin or in their nasal passages.

Recent speakers at the International Conf. on Equine Infectious Dx from several countries, reported on MRSA among horses.

Microbiologists from the Centre Hospitalier Memorial de St –Lo in France reported MRSA strains which are often resistant to a wide range of antibiotics.

MRSA has been found to affect horses with skin infections, wounds, surgical or catheter sites, septic arthritis and pneumonia.

MRSA is being spread from humans to horses & vise versa.

Precautions are recommended for vets & other animal handlers who are in contact with MRSA infected animals

MRSA Infections in Horses & Other Animals – Kentucky Equine Research Staff March 18, 2014

Infections caused by MRSA were found in horses, cats, & dogs in a recent study in Germany.  Between 2010 & 2013, researchers checked more than 5,200 swabs from infected wounds treated in 1,170 veterinary facilities.

• Out of 604 swabs from horses – 138 (23%) showed S. Aureus

• 6% of the swabs from dogs were positive.
• 12% of Cats were positive.
• aureus is wide spread in our environments.

MRSA was found in

• 63% of the dogs
• 46% of the cats
• 41% of the horses

Human associated MRSA strains were the most common infections in dogs & cats.

90% of the Equine MRSA was the CC398 strain. Prior studies showed Equines to have the CC8 Strain.

Further studies are needed to trace the MRSA – human/animal cross contamination & enabling risk managment & containment of MRSA strains.

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