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Like some other equine maladies, Lyme disease is somewhat difficult to diagnose because signs are vague, confusing, or nonexistent in some infected horses. Common signs such as weight loss and low-grade fever might suggest a generalized infection; poor performance, sporadic lameness, muscle tenderness, and arthritis seem to indicate musculoskeletal problems; and behavioral changes and skin hypersensitivity are compatible with neurologic disease.

Lyme disease has been reported in horses from the eastern United States as well as California and Texas. The disease is spread to horses when biting ticks pass on Borrelia burgdorferi spirochetes. Some horses may develop antibodies after exposure, but never develop clinical signs of illness; others develop signs several months after they are exposed. Early detection of Lyme disease allows treatment to begin sooner, speeding recovery.

Cornell University researchers have developed a new diagnostic test for Lyme disease that not only allows early detection of a Lyme disease infection, but differentiates among antibodies seen in vaccinated horses, those with a new infection, and those that have been infected for a longer period of time. This Lyme Multiplex assay detects the horse’s antibodies to one of three outer surface proteins produced by B. burgdorferi. Based on results of the assay, veterinarians can determine with a high degree of accuracy whether a horse is free of infection, newly infected (within the previous three weeks to five months), or chronically infected (for at least five months).

The Snap 4D test has been used previously for diagnosis of Lyme disease, but this test can’t detect infection as early as the Multiplex assay. In addition, the Snap 4D test is subject to both false negative and false positive results. The Multiplex assay can be used for early diagnosis or to confirm the results of the Snap 4D test. To return horses to health most rapidly, early and accurate diagnosis is essential, and treatment should begin as soon as possible after infection is confirmed.

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