BOVINE EPHEMERAL FEVER
Synonyms: Three day sickness, Stiff sickness, Etankia.
Acute and contagious disease of cattle
and buffalo
Characterised by,sudden onset of fever,
depression, stiffness, lameness, high morbidity, low mortality, recovery within
3 days
All breeds of cattle basically young
animals - 6 months to 2 years more aresusceptible.Buffalo occasionally
susceptible
Etiology: Genus- Lyssavirus,Family- Rhabdoviridae
Pathogenesis:Following entry multiply in blood.Viraemia
occur.Virus localised in mesodermal tissues like joint, muscle, lymph nodes.
Clinical signs:
- Incubation period 2-10 days
- High rise of
temperature.Generally biphasic.Sometimes triphasic or polyphasic about
105-10
- Fall in milk production
- Increased heart &
respiration rate
- Anorexia
- Ruminalatony
- Serous or mucoid nasal and
occular diseases
- Salivation
- Muscle twitching
- Temporary lameness
- Shivering in second febrile
stage
- Only rise after sufficiently
stimulated
- Sternal recumbency
- Motor paralysis
- Aspiration pneumonia
- Recovery 2 days after acute
clinical sign
Diagnosis:
- History and clinical sign
- Bloodpicture
- Neutrophillia with a left shift
- Lymphopenia at peak clinical
sign
- Acute stage marked leukocytosis
- Marked increase in creatine
kinase due to skeletal muscle degeneration
- Significant decrease in plasma
calcium having signs of hypocalcaemia
- ELISA, CFT
- Animal inoculation test
- virus isolation goldstandard
- RT-PCR
Lesions:
- Pneumonia
- Lungs emphysema and patchy
edema
- Polyserositis
- Enlarged Lymph nodes
- Cellulitis and focal necrosis
of skeletal muscle
- Polyarthritis
- Polytendinitis
Treatment:
- No specific treatment
- Only symptomatic
- I/M non-steroidal
anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)
Control and prevention:
- Vector control
- Insect proof cowshed
- Vaccine
- Subunit vaccine
- G protein vaccine
- DNA vaccine
- Not commercially available in
India