Health Alert
Posted: March 29, 2012
The neurologic form of equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) was confirmed in a North Carolina mare on Jan. 5.
The horse was taken to the College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) at North Carolina State University (NC State). EHV-1 is not transmissible to humans, it is highly contagious among horses and camelids, and it is generally passed from horse to horse via aerosol transmission (when affected animals sneeze/cough) and contact with nasal secretions. The disease can cause a variety of ailments in equines, including rhinopneumonitis (a respiratory disease usually found in young horses), abortion in broodmares, and myeloencephalopathy (EHM, the neurologic form).
