title: Immunotherapy trial for horses in British Columbia with Culicoides (Diptera:Ceratopogonidae) hypersensitivity.
abstract: Immunotherapy was used to treat horses in British Columbia for Culicoides hypersensitivity. This is a severe, chronic, recurrent allergic disease of horses that results in severe irritation, large lesions, hair loss and secondary infection in the ventral midline, mane, and proximal region of the tail. A crude Culicoides extract was injected subcutaneously, in increasing doses, into 10 horses that were affected severely by the disease. Weekly doses reduced the clinical signs in 9 of the 10 horses in the 1st yr. Eight horses were treated with a maintenance dose during a 2nd yr. After the 2nd yr, 3 horses were completely free of clinical signs, 3 showed much less severe clinical signs than in untreated years, and 2 showed moderate reduction in clinical signs. Dosage, frequency of injections, and possible future applications of this technique are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Belton
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jahren
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lange
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kleider
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001955:British Columbia; D002519:Ceratopogonidae / Q000276:immunology*; D003888:Desensitization, Immunologic; D018450:Disease Progression; D004306:Dose-Response Relationship, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D006734:Horse Diseases / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D006736:Horses; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000628:therapy / Q000662:veterinary*; D007267:Injections; D008297:Male