Research article · 2020 · Full text
International Journal of Veterinary Sciences and Animal HusbandryTherapeutic management of babesiosis in cattle
Volume 5(5) · Pages 01–03
Research areasVector-borne infectious diseasesViral Infections and VectorsVector-Borne Animal Diseases
Abstract
Author-writtenThe health and production in domestic animals are influenced by various factors; among them parasites constitute the most important pathogenic agents. Tick-transmitted hemoparasites of the protozoan genus Babesia (phylum Apicomplexa) are the second most common blood-borne parasites of mammals after the trypanosomes. In worldwide, Babesiosis is one of the most important tick-borne disease caused by Babesia spp. occur in cattle which causes economic losses to the farming community by reducing the milk and meat production Bovine Babesiosis is characterized by high fever, hemoglobinuria, anaemia, inappetence, pink pale to pale mucous membrane, swollen lymph node and suspended rumination with mild to moderate tick infestation. Microscopic examination was advocated for detection of Babesia piroplasm in Giemsa stained thin blood smears. All animals were successfully treated with Diminazineaceturate @ 3.5mg/kg b.wt. Along with supportive therapy.
Summary
Source-checkedPlain-language reading of the full paper, prepared with AI and checked against the text. Each point links to the authors' own words.
Why it matters
- Babesiosis is a significant tick-borne disease in cattle globally that leads to economic losses by decreasing meat and milk production. View evidence ↗
- In tropical and subtropical regions, the primary species causing babesiosis in cattle are Babesia bovis and Babesia bigemina. View evidence ↗
- Tropical climates, such as those found in India, are highly favorable for the propagation of the tick vectors that transmit the disease. View evidence ↗
The question
- The study aims to describe the clinical observations of cattle infected with Babesia and evaluate a successful therapeutic management approach. View evidence ↗
What they did
- The study was conducted using five cross-bred cows between the ages of four and six years. View evidence ↗
- Diagnosis was performed by examining Giemsa-stained thin blood smears, collected from the ear vein and viewed under an oil immersion microscope. View evidence ↗
- The primary treatment consisted of Diminazine Aceturate (Berenil RTU) administered intramuscularly at 3.5 mg/kg body weight on the first day. View evidence ↗
- Supportive therapy included intramuscular injections of Belamyl (10 ml), Melonex plus (0.5 mg/kg), and Imferon (4 ml) on day one, followed by two weeks of daily haematinic and liver tonic (50 ml BID). View evidence ↗
What they found
- Hemoglobinuria, characterized by coffee-colored urine, was present in all five studied animals. View evidence ↗
- Clinical examination of all animals revealed pale mucous membranes and enlarged lymph nodes. View evidence ↗
- Microscopic analysis confirmed the presence of Babesia bigemina, identified as pear-shaped bodies within mature erythrocytes. View evidence ↗
- The treated animals returned to a normal temperature (became afebrile) within 12 hours of starting therapy. View evidence ↗
- Urine color returned to normal after one day, and milk production was fully restored within two weeks. View evidence ↗
What it means
- The authors conclude that successful management of bovine babesiosis requires a combination of early detection, specific chemotherapy, and intensive supportive care. View evidence ↗
Visual summary
2 visualsIllustrations explain the paper; charts are replotted from the paper's own table values.
Management Cycle of Babesiosis
AI-generated conceptual illustration (cattle). It explains the idea and does not show study data.
View source evidence ↗
Temperature: Animal 1 vs Animal 2 vs Animal 3 vs Animal 4
Replotted from Table 1 (page 2) of the original paper. Every bar is the paper's own table value.
View source evidence ↗Figures & tables
From the original paper
Table 1
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 1C
Figure 1D
Figure 2Introduction
Babesiosis is an important tick borne protozoan infection caused by genus Babesia which is clinically characterized by high fever, inappetence, emaciation, anaemia, jaundice and hemoglobinuria, occasionally diarrhoea and abortion may occur in pregnant cattle (Salem et al., 2016) [1] . The haemoprotozoan B. canis is a common piroplasm affecting the erythrocytes of the dogs of India and is transmitted by the brown dog tick Rhipicephalussanguineus (Dantas-Torres, 2010) [2] . The most important species responsible for the disease in cattle are Babesiabovis and Babesiabigemina in the tropics and subtropics. Both species are tick-borne and intra-erythrocytic infections. The climatic conditions in the tropical countries including India are most congenital for the tick vector propagation. Abundance of intermediate host i.e. Boophilus sp. of tick, were observed as predisposing factor in the development of clinical symptoms. The tick-borne infection leads to negative impact on livestock health as well as great economic losses. Babesiosis is classified as the second most widespread blood-borne disease among animals (Homer et al., 2000) [3] and is recently gaining increasing interest as an emerging zoonosis of humans (Homer et al., 2000 and Zintl et al., 2003) [4] .This study describes the clinical observations in Babesia infected cattle with successful therapeutic management.
History and Clinical Observations
The present study was conducted in five cross-bred cows aged between four years to six years. Animals presented with clinical signs like high fever, hemoglobinuria, anaemia, pale mucous membrane, general weakness, anorexia and tick infestation formed the material for the study. Clinical examination revealed high rectal temperature (103 0 F -106 0 F), swollen lymph nodes, pale conjuctival mucous membrane, hemoglobinuria and mild to moderate tick infestation (Table-1 and Fig. 1a,1b,1c,1d). Thin blood smears were prepared using peripheral blood collected from ear vein of each cattle. Blood smears were labelled and fixed using methanol. Smears were stained with Giemsa stain at 1 in 10 dilutions for 30 minutes and examined under oil immersion objective of the microscope for the presence of intra-erythrocytic stages of hemoparasites
Diagnosis and Treatment
On microscopic examination, Babesiabigemina could be detected as pear-shaped bodies joined at an acute angle within the mature erythrocyte in the blood smear (Fig. 2)
Discussion
The tick-borne infection leads to negative impact on livestock health as well as great economic losses. Babesiosis is an important tick borne protozoan infection caused by genus Babesia which is clinically characterized by high fever, in appetence, emaciation, anaemia, jaundice and hemoglobinuria, occasionally diarrhoea and abortion may occur in pregnant cattle (Salem et al., 2016) [1] The present study conducted on five clinical cases of cattle, showed clinical symptoms such as high fever, off feed, reduced water intake, hemoglobinuria, anaemia, pale mucous membrane, general weakness, anorexia. All the animals were infested with ticks. In majority of cases animal were passing coffee coloured urine. Deepak et al. (2019) [5] [6] demonstrated the developmental stages of Babesiabigemina in Boophilusmicroplus as sporozoites in squash preparations of larva, nymph and adult stained with haematoxylin and eosin. The light microcopy examination for detection of Babesia piroplasm is relatively cheap, quick and gold standard. Bose et al. (1995) [7] , claimed that the method of choice to detect Babesial parasites in acute conditions was the examination of Giemsa stained thin blood films for excellent demonstration of morphological details of the parasites and species identification were possible. All the affected animals under study were treated with Diminazine aceturate along with supportive therapy. The animals became afebrile by 12 hours of therapy. De Vos (1979) [8] suggested the most commonly used chemotherapy for Babesia infections in cattle is Diminazineaceturate. It has rapid action against B. bovis and B. bigemina and can protect cattle for 2 to 4 weeks. The present study suggested that early detection as well as specific chemotherapy and intensive supportive therapy are essential for successful management of Babesiosis in cattle.
Figures and tables from the paper
| — | Animal 1 | Animal 2 | Animal 3 | Animal 4 | Animal 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temperature | 104.20F | 1040F | 105.40F | 105.20F | 104.80F |
| Mucous membrane | Pale | Pale | Pale | Pale | Pale |
| Lymph node | Enlarged | Enlarged | Enlarged | Enlarged | Enlarged |
| Hemoglobinuria (coffee coloured urine) | Present | Present | Present | Present | Present |
Table text extracted from the original PDF; superscript letters are shown inline. The original table image is below.
View original table image
References
8 in the original paper- Salem NY, El-sherif MA. Clinical, hemato-biochemical alterations and -antioxidant biomarkers in Babesia infected calves. Int J Vet.Sci and Med 2016;4:17-22.
- Dantas-Torres F. Biology and ecology of the brown dog tick, Rhipicephalussanguineus. Parasites and vectors 2010;3:26.
- Homer MJ, Delfin IA, Telford SR, Krause PJ, Persing DH. Babesiosis. Clin. Microbiol. Rev 2000;13:451-469.
- Zintl A, Mulcahy G, Skerrett HE, Taylor SM, Gray JS. Babesiadivergens, a bovine blood parasite of veterinary and zoonotic importance. Clin. Microbiol. Rev. 2003;16(4):622-636.
- Deepak Chandran PB, Padmaja, Vishnurahav RB. Haemato-biochemical changes and therapeutic management of Babesiosis in cattle. J. Vet. Anim. Sci 2019;50(1):68-70.
- Achuthan HN, Mahadevan S, Lalitha CM. Studies on the developmental forms of Babesiosisbigemina and Babesiacanis in Ixodid ticks. Indian Vet. J. 1980;57:181184.
- Bose R, Jorgensen WK, Dalgliesh RJ, Friedhoff KT, de Vos AJ. Current state and future trends in diagnosis of babesiosis. Vet. Parasitol 1995;57:61-74.
- De Vos AJ. Epidemiology and control of bovine babesiosis in South Africa. J. S. Afr. Vet. Assoc 1979;50:357-362.
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- Bovine babesiosis: A general review
Deepak Chandran · International Journal of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry · 2021
The health and production in domestic animals are influenced by various factors; among them parasites constitute the most important pathogenic agents. Tick-transmitted hemoparasites of the protozoan genus Babesia (phylum Apicomplexa) are the second most common blood-borne parasites of mammals after the trypanosomes. In worldwide, Babesiosis is one of the most important tick-borne disease caused by Babesia spp. occur in cattle which causes economic losses to the farming community by reducing the milk and meat production Bovine Babesiosis is characterized by high fever, hemoglobinuria, anaemia,