Eyes
Keratoconjunctivitis - pinkeye
By www.exopol.com
Nov 5, 2002, 10:21am

Keratoconjunctivitis

In bovine and ovine-caprine cattle, Moraxella bovis is the most common cause of conjunctivitis, though in any case a differential and/or complementary diagnosis should be made with Chlamydia and Mycoplasma. Moreover, IBR virus should be considered in bovine cattle.

In order to prevent many of these cases it is possible to prepare autovaccines with the strains that have already been isolated in other seasons, or alternatively samples can be collected from the first cases detected in the present spring period.

Conjunctival swabs are to be sent to the laboratory (ideally 3-4 from various affected animals).

A review of the most interesting articles on keratoconjunctivitis published in the literature can be obtained in PubMed.

• Infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis and lymphofollicular hyperplasia of the third eyelid in heifers.
• Infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis: a review.
• Prolonged occurrence of Moraxella bovis infection on a restricted heifer farm.
• Estimation of fimbrial vaccine effectiveness in protection against keratoconjunctivitis infectiosa in calves considering different routes of introducing vaccine antigene.
• Further data to the aetiology, pathogenesis and therapy of infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis.
• Immunogenicity of a Moraxella bovis bacterin containing attachment and cornea-degrading enzyme antigens.
• Infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis: seasonal variation in cultural, biochemical and immunoreactive properties of Moraxella bovis isolated from the eyes of cattle.
• Identification of bovine carriers of Moraxella bovis by comparative cultural examinations of ocular and nasal secretions.