Acute and Chronic Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae Infection in Lambs

Abstract

Polyarthritis caused by Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae is a relatively common infection in lambs characterized by low mortality and high morbidity. E. rhusiopathiae is a ubiquitous Gram-positive bacterium that is both a commensal and a pathogen of vertebrates. The disease was studied during an outbreak in a Norwegian Spæl sheep flock. In the acute phase, 48 of 230 (20%) lambs developed clinical signs and 4 died (1.7%). One acute case was necropsied and E. rhusiopathiae was cultured from all major organs investigated and from joints. There was a fibrinous polyarthritis, increased presence of monocytes in vessels, and necrosis of Purkinje cells. Sixteen of the diseased animals (33%) developed a chronic polyarthritis. Eight of these lambs were necropsied; all had lesions in major limb joints, and 3 of 8 also had lesions in the atlanto-occipital joint. At this stage, E. rhusiopathiae was cultured only from the joints in 7 of 8 (87.5%) lambs, but by real-time polymerase chain reaction, we showed persistence of the bacterium in several organs. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis typing of the bacterial isolates indicated that the same strain caused the acute and chronic disease. Five of 6 (83%) chronically affected animals had amyloidosis of the spleen, and 6 of 8 (75%) had amyloidosis of the liver. All chronically affected animals had a glomerulonephritis, and 6 of 8 (75%) had sparse degeneration in the brain. Ceruloplasmin and haptoglobin were significantly increased in the chronically diseased lambs. These results show that chronic ovine erysipelas is not restricted to joints but is a multisystemic disease.

Myocardial infarctions due to Erysipelotrix rhusiopathiae infection in an adult sheep

“…The most common manifestations of E. rhusiopathiae infection in sheep are polyarthritis and lameness (Ray, 1930;Marsh, 1931;Henderson et al, 1952;Giles, 1981;Ersdal et al, 2015). Other reported forms of infection are valvular endocarditis (Stamp and Watt, 1947;Chineme et al, 1973;Maclachlan, 1978), abortion (Schmitz and Sonn, 1984), pneumonia, septicemia (Nicolas et al, 1980;Griffiths et al, 1991;Rad et al, 1998;Ersdal et al, 2015), cutaneous infections (Whitten et al, 1948;Griffiths et al, 1991), and multiple spleen abscesses (Afnan and Tadjbackche, 1974). The most serious manifestation of the infection is septicemia to which endocarditis seems to be linked (Gorby and Peacock, 1988).…”

Erysipelothrix Spp.: Past, Present, and Future Directions in Vaccine Research

“…Outbreaks have been reported in 2-3 day old poults (55) or commercial breeder flocks of quails (56). In sheep, the most common clinical manifestation is polyarthritis, typically presenting in 2-to 6-month-old lambs (57). Chronic ovine erysipelas is often restricted to joints with subchondral bone involvement (57).…”

“…In sheep, the most common clinical manifestation is polyarthritis, typically presenting in 2-to 6-month-old lambs (57). Chronic ovine erysipelas is often restricted to joints with subchondral bone involvement (57). While slaughter condemnations in farmed animals other than pigs rarely occur, chronic cases that reach the slaughterhouse may pose a zoonotic risk to workers and infection of slaughterhouse employees has been reported (56).…”

“…Economic losses can be directly associated with high morbidity and mortality rates during an acute outbreak (Figure 3) resulting in a reduction of animals on a given farm (43,45), including significant egg drop in layers (47). In addition, as a result of joint pain and lameness due to the chronic form of the disease, there may be substantial decreased weigh gain, subsequently resulting in an increased time to slaughter (57). Finally, there may be increased numbers of condemned carcasses at slaughter due to lesions that may only become visible during scaling and dehairing processes or at the splitting floor (53,59).…”

Flock-level risk factors for outbreaks of infectious arthritis in lambs, Norway 2018

“…Some authors consider E. rhusiopathiae the most common cause of arthritis in lambs [ 4 ]. This infection is occasionally seen in Norway, also in lambs below 1 month of age [ 5 ], but it typically presents in lambs between 2 and 6-months of age [ 3 , 4 ]. S. aureus is also a relatively common cause of arthritis in lambs, but outbreaks are often a complication of tick-associated pyemia in lambs on pasture [ 4 ].…”