AAEP InfectiousDisease Guidelines: Strangles Risk Factors Comminglingwithmany horses of unknown origin andmedical history.


Transmission Direct: horse-to-horse contact


Indirect: contaminated fomiteswhichmay includewater troughs, veterinary equipment, twitches, blankets, grooming tools, buckets, handlers, tack, etc.


Transmission can occur fromhorseswith no clinical signswho are incubating the disease or have developed a persistent subclinical shedder status.


Diagnostic


Sampling, Testing and Handling


Sample Pharyngeal


swab. Avoid rostral nasal swabbing


Aspirate of abscess,


discharge from


abscess or nasal area


Serology Serum


Nasopharyngeal wash


SeMAntibody Titer - ELISA


PCR or culture Strangles Test


PCR and/or culture


Shipping


Swab should be placed in plain


red top tube for PCR testing; bacterial


transportmedia for culture


PCR and / culture


Swab should be placed in plain


red top tube for PCr


Leak proof tube or vial


Fluid can be sent in leak proof


container such as a plain red top tube or


Given the low numbers shed in the nasal secretion early in the course of the disease, PCRmay be the best test in horses that are pyrexic but not yet draining an infected abscess. For practicality an endoscope-directed guttural pouch lavagemay provide the best sample for PCR and allowvisualization of the pharyngeal inflammation and examination of the guttural pouches for chondroids or purulentmaterial.


PCR in combinationwith culture is the test of choice to determine the status of exposed and recovered animals. It ismore sensitive than culture in detecting small amounts of bacterialDNA but does not differentiate live bacteria from


2 Copyright AAEP – Revised 2017 Chilled overnight Chilled overnight Chilled overnight Handling Chilled overnight


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