ARCHIVE: Epizootic Lymphangitis

If you suspect signs of any notifiable disease, you must immediately notify a Defra Divisional Veterinary Manager.

Definition

A contagious and eruptive disease caused by Histoplasma farciminosum formerly called Cryptococcus farciminosum.

Animals affected.

Horses and mules. Cattle are susceptible, but seldom contract the disease under natural conditions.

Clinical signs

The eruption appears on the legs, the neck, the head, or any part of the body. Usually it starts near a wound through which the microbe has entered the tissues, but the ulcers often do not appear for months after the wound has healed. The lymph vessels in the skin stand out prominently, and small hard nodules about the size of a hazelnut appear on their course. These nodules suppurate and discharge a thick yellow pus. Proud flesh grows from the wounds, the lymph vessels around being inflamed, and the eruption gradually extends. A thick yellow scab may form over a patch of ulcers. The neighbouring glands are swollen and hard. The ulcers heal with difficulty, even under treatment, and they may break out again after an apparent cure had been effected.

The ulcers may appear inside the nostrils, but this not so common as in the case of Glanders. In epizootic lymphangitis the glands under the jaw may also be enlarged, as in the former disease, and a discharge may appear at one or both nostrils. If taken in the early stages this disease is curable, but after an advanced stage is reached treatment is hopeless. In the latter case the animals become emaciated and may die of exhaustion.

This disease is distinguished from farcy (Glanders) by the presence of the histoplasma in the pus, and failure of the mallein test to produce a reaction. Both Glanders and epizootic lymphangitis may be present in the same animal. Serology can be used to assist diagnosis.

The fungus may be spread directly or indirectly by flies, or use of contaminated grooming equipment or tack. It can remain infective in soil for up to 15 days.

 

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Page last modified: April 22, 2010