Collegiate Times

The Virginia Tech owned Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center in Leesburg, Va., lifted the quarantine last Friday from its neurological equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1).

The hospital reopened to outpatients on Friday, March 30, and resumed full operations (inpatient and emergency care) on Monday, April 2.

“Because our faculty members conduct cutting-edge research into equine disease, we were prepared to handle this type of an outbreak,” said Martin Furr, Adelaide C. Riggs chair in equine medicine in the press release. “Although additional research into the prevention and treatment of EHV-1 is needed, our experience has taught us that the immediate implementation of emergency management procedures is the best way to stop the spread of this type of contagion.”

The hospital was initially placed under quarantine by the Virginia State Veterinarian’s Office on Feb. 20 because of suspected infection of EHV-1 virus in two horses.

According to the center’s press release on March 29, three horses tested positive for EHV-1 after the quarantine was implemented.

The hospital was then divided physically and functionally into four parts so as to isolate the infected horses.

In order for the horses to be released, the hospital had to put forth a protocol for testing the horses for the virus.

“There are some drugs which are purported to reduce the problems it causes, but still the horses basically have to go through enough time to let the virus become no longer a problem for them,” said Nat White, Jean Ellen Shehan professor and director of the center.

With the protocol in place, the horses each had to go through a series of stringent criterion in which they must be without fever for 12 days and have nasal swabs test negative for the virus for three consecutive days.

Should the tests show that the horse is not infected with the virus; it may be declared healthy and released.

Since the quarantine was introduced, two of the horses that initially tested positive have now tested negative for the virus, the other was euthanized due to unrelated medical conditions.

“We believe that we approached the problem very appropriately and very accurately,” said Jeffery Douglas, communications manager for the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Tech.