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Discussion on Causes of Respiratory Infections
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Member:
Sross
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Posted on Sunday, Feb 2, 2003 - 8:16 pm:
In your (great!) article on Colds and Flu in Horses, you state that the most common cause of cough, nasal discharge, and fever in horses is viruses with the primary transmission method being sneezes and coughs. And of course there's also bacterial URT infections like strangles.
But can a horse develop a respiratory infection (with discharge and fever) based on anything other than a virus or bacteria (like a dusty environment)? Obviously, being in a dusty environment is no more good for horse lungs than it is good for human lungs.
But can exposure to airborne dirt/dust (such as horse in stall while nearby arena is dragged generating a good bit of dust) CAUSE a respiratory infection?
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Monday, Feb 3, 2003 - 7:10 am:
Compliments will get you everywhere Sandra. There are a couple of points. If the dust particles carry pathogens with them then yes, this could be a uncommon way to get a lung infection. Dust may carry some of the unusual causes of infectious pneumonia, like funguses. Dust particularly that containig mold spores holds a more common cause of problems and that is an allergic pneumonia, for more on this see the article on COPD and Heaves in the respirtory diseases section.
DrO
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