Search

The use of disposable plastics and their subsequent environmental impacts are topics of increasing concern in modern society. Medical, including veterinary, sectors are major contributors to plastic waste production. While there is an existing body of literature on the use and reduction of disposable plastics in the human medical sector, few studies, if any, have specifically investigated the use of plastics within the veterinary field. The overall aim of this pilot study was to investigate Australian veterinarians regarding their attitudes toward the ways in which they use disposable plastic in their work and personal lives.

Q fever is an important zoonotic disease perceived to be an occupational hazard for those working with livestock. Outbreaks involving large numbers of people are uncommon, but the increasing case incidence coupled with changing environmental and industry conditions that promote transmission of Q fever has raised concerns that large and serious outbreaks could become more frequent. The aim of this study was to use expert opinion to better understand how large Q fever outbreaks might occur in an Australian context and to document factors believed to be drivers of disease transmission. Focus groups were conducted with human and animal health professionals across several Australian states. All discussions were recorded, transcribed verbatim and imported into NVIVO for thematic analysis. Four anthropogenic risk factors (disease awareness, industry practices, land use, human behaviour) and three ecological risk factors (physical environment, agent dissemination, animal hosts) emerged from the data. Analysis of expert opinions pointed to the existence of numerous scenarios in which Q fever outbreaks could occur, many of which depict acquisition in the wider community outside of traditional at-risk occupations. This perception of the expansion of Q fever from occupational-acquisition to community-acquisition is driven by greater overarching economic, political and socio-cultural influences that govern the way in which people live and work. Findings from this study highlight that outbreaks are complex phenomena that involve the convergence of diverse elements, not just that of the pathogen and host, but also the physical, political and socioeconomic environments in which they interact. A review of the approaches to prevent and manage Q fever outbreaks will require a multisectorial approach and strengthening of community education, communication and engagement so that all stakeholders become an integrated part of outbreak mitigation and response.

The largest Australian farm-based outbreak of Q fever originated from a dairy goat herd. We surveyed commercial dairy goat farms across Australia by testing bulk tank milk (BTM) samples using a commercial indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and two quantitative polymerase chain reactions (PCRs). Of the 66 commercial dairy goat herds on record, managers from 61 herds were contacted and 49 provided BTM samples. Five of the surveyed herds were positive on at least one of the diagnostic tests, thus herd-level apparent prevalence was 10% (95% confidence interval [CI] 4 to 22). True prevalence was estimated to be 3% (95% credible interval: 0 to 18). Herd managers completed a questionnaire on herd management, biosecurity and hygiene practices and risk factors were investigated using multivariable logistic regression. Herds with900 milking does (the upper quartile) were more likely to be Coxiella burnetii positive (odds ratio = 6.75; 95% CI 1.65 to 27.7) compared with farms with ≤900 milking does. The odds of BTM positivity increased by a factor of 2.53 (95% CI 1.51 to 4.22) for each order of magnitude increase in the number of goats per acre. C. burnetii was not detected in samples from the majority of the Australian dairy goat herds suggesting there is an opportunity to protect the industry and contain this disease with strengthened biosecurity practices. Intensification appeared associated with an increased risk of positivity. Further investigation is required to discriminate the practices associated with an increased risk of introduction to disease-free herds, from practices associated with maintenance of C. burnetii infection in infected dairy goat herds.

Dog parks provide an ideal urban space where dogs and their owners can exercise, play, and socialise in a safe environment. However, these parks can also increase the risk of exposure to a series of infectious agents including canine soil-transmitted helminths (cSTHs) such as hookworms, roundworms, Strongyloides stercoralis, and Trichuris vulpis, which are endemic to Australia. In this study, we collected 1581 canine faecal samples in 190 urban parks across Australia and subjected these to faecal floatation and multiplex real-time PCRs (qPCR) to detect a range of cSTHs. In total, 44.2% of the parks sampled were contaminated with at least one species of cSTH, with hookworms being the most prevalent parasites (10.2%) followed by Trichuris spp. (1.3%) and Strongyloides spp. (1.2%). This is the first large-scale study investigating the contamination of urban parks with cSTHs in Australia, and the first nation-wide study to demonstrate the occurrence of Strongyloides spp. in canine faecal samples from urban areas in the country. This study reveals a high rate of contamination with cSTHs in dog parks in urban Australia, most of which having proven zoonotic potential. Preventive measures, including awareness-raising educational programmes promoting responsible pet ownership, should be encouraged to minimise the health risks associated with cSTHs for both dogs and humans.

Lameness is an important concern in working equids of low- and middle-income communities (LMICs) with significant One Welfare implications. This study aims to determine the prevalence and influencing factors of lameness in working equids of LMICs. A systematic review and meta-analysis were performed to investigate pooled outcome prevalence using a random intercept regression model. Subgroup and sensitivity analysis were performed through meta-regression. A meta-analysis of study factors for lameness prevalence was performed. Sixty-four studies were included in the review. The pooled prevalence of lameness was 29.9% (n = 42, 95% CI 17–47%), while the pooled prevalence of gait abnormality was 62.9% (n = 12; 95% CI 31–87%). When considering both outcomes together, the pooled prevalence was 38.4% (n = 46; 95% CI 23–57%) with a significant (p = 0.02) difference between lameness (29.5%; 95% CI 16–48%) and gait abnormality (78.8%; 95% CI 40–95%). Species, country income level, gait assessed, and risk of bias did not significantly affect the pooled prevalence. Lower body condition scores, unresponsive attitudes, and old age were the most frequently reported factors positively associated with lameness-related outcomes. Working 7 days per week was positively associated with lameness. The standardization of outcome terminology, grading systems, and study factor categorization is recommended to enable more accurate interpretation and comparison between studies.

Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) infect 1.5 billion people and countless animals worldwide. In Australian Indigenous communities, STH infections have largely remained endemic despite control efforts, suggesting reservoirs of infection may exist. Dogs fulfil various important cultural, social and occupational roles in Australian Indigenous communities and are populous in these settings. Dogs may also harbour zoonotic STHs capable of producing morbidity and mortality in dogs and humans. This review provides an overview of human and zoonotic STH infections, identifies the Australian Indigenous locations affected and the parasite species and hosts involved. The meta-analysis provides estimates of individual study and pooled true prevalence of STH infections in Australian Indigenous communities and identifies knowledge gaps for further research on zoonotic or anthroponotic potential. A systematic literature search identified 45 eligible studies documenting the presence of Strongyloides stercoralis, Trichuris trichiura, Ancylostoma caninum, Ancylostoma duodenale, Ancylostoma ceylanicum, undifferentiated hookworm, and Ascaris lumbricoides. Of these studies, 26 were also eligible for inclusion in meta-analysis to establish true prevalence in the light of imperfect diagnostic test sensitivity and specificity by Rogan-Gladen and Bayesian methods. These studies revealed pooled true prevalence estimates of 18.9% (95% CI 15.8–22.1) for human and canine S. stercoralis infections and 77.3% (95% CI 63.7–91.0) for canine A. caninum infections indicating continued endemicity, but considerably more heterogenous pooled estimates for canine A. ceylanicum infections, and A. duodenale, undifferentiated hookworm and T. trichiura in humans. This review suggests that the prevalence of STHs in Australian Indigenous communities has likely been underestimated, principally based on imperfect diagnostic tests. Potential misclassification of hookworm species in humans and dogs due to outdated methodology, also obscures this picture. High-quality contemporary studies are required to establish current true prevalence of parasite species in all relevant hosts to guide future policy development and control decisions under a culturally sound One Health framework.