KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. — The University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine’s New Bolton Center now offers a comprehensive Equine Lyme Disease Evaluation package designed to find the answer to an often complex diagnostic puzzle.
Board-certified specialists in internal medicine, neurology, ophthalmology, and sports medicine work as a team to find the answer to the vexing question: Is it Lyme?
Disease exposure
The tick-borne infection is endemic in the Mid-Atlantic region, where up to 90% of horses show evidence of exposure. The vast majority of exposed horses do not develop clinical signs of disease.
Infections
However, some infected horses will develop central nervous system, orthopedic, or ophthalmic infections. Clinical signs include lameness, arthritis, joint swelling, muscle soreness, gait abnormalities, neck stiffness, weight loss, behavioral changes, uveitis, seizures, difficulty eating, heart rhythm abnormalities, difficulty breathing, and collapse.
Bacterium exposure
Differentiating the horses that have been exposed to Borrelia burgdorferi, a bacterium that causes Lyme disease, but whose clinical signs can be attributed to a non-infectious disease, is a challenge. A simple blood test can show evidence of exposure, but often it cannot give a definitive diagnosis.
Details
The package, which costs $1200, includes neurologic, lameness, ophthalmic, upper airway, and other examinations by New Bolton Center’s board-certified specialists. For information call the center at 610-444-5800.
