Hendra virus alert among horse owners

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDMay 5 2011

Horse owners are being warned to prepare for the deadly Hendra virus season.

Hendra virus is a bat-borne virus that has killed four of the seven humans who have been infected and caused the deaths more than 40 horses since it was discovered in 1994. Humans contract the disease from horses but there has been neither human-to-human transmission of the disease nor direct transmission from bats to humans report experts. The majority of outbreaks have occurred during June and October, however last year a horse in Tewantin contracted the virus in May.

The Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) is warning horse owners and vets to take precautions, and to be on the lookout for any Hendra symptoms. According to AVA president Dr Barry Smyth human infections have been the result of close contact with the bodily fluids and secretions of infected horses. “The risk can be greatly reduced by adopting good hygiene practices as a matter of routine and taking increased precautions around any sick horse…It is also important to wash your hands with soap and water regularly before, during and after handling horses, and minimize contact with your horse if it is unwell,” he explained. He explained that there were no specific symptoms of infection in horses but some signs to look out for included respiratory distress, frothy nasal discharge, elevated body temperature (above 40C) and elevated heart rate.

“So far cases of Hendra infection have been restricted to Queensland and New South Wales, but there is potential for the disease wherever there are flying foxes,” Dr Smyth said. Experts add that preventive measures include placing feed and water under cover and away from trees flying foxes may use to roost, not leaving out food scraps that could attract bats and keeping horses away from fields where the marsupials are active. “There are still lots of gaps in our knowledge about how Hendra virus spreads and we don't know what effect the recent record wet weather will have,” Dr Smyth said.

The AVA advises owners to contact their veterinarian immediately if health problems are noticed in their horses or they suspect the horse might be infected with Hendra virus.