The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) has added equine neurologic syndrome to its list of infectious livestock or poultry diseases that must be reported to MDA officials. Under Maryland law (Agriculture Article, Section 3-105 Annotated Code of Maryland), veterinarians are required to report immediately to the secretary of agriculture (in practice, the state veterinarian acting on behalf of the secretary of agriculture) any contagious and infectious disease among livestock or poultry of which he/she has knowledge. The neurologic syndrome addition was made on March 1.

According to the MDA, “The syndrome is defined as equine neurologic disease, which is likely caused by an infectious process (not caused by situations such as trauma, toxicity, development, etc.) consistent with rabies, equine herpesvirus, viral encephalitides such as West Nile, Eastern and Western equine, and others. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis is not a primary disease of interest in this reporting requirement, although it is likely to meet the clinical definition which will trigger reporting.”

The new requirement will enable MDA officials to make a timely assessment of the neurologic disease situation and take appropriate action. The requirement does not require laboratory documentation–veterinarians should submit their clinical diagnoses of central nervous system involvement to the state veterinarian’s office at 410/841-5810 “as soon as practical after identifying equine neurologic syndrome in a horse,” said an MDA press release. “Veterinarians should prioritize this reporting as an urgent matter. Same day reporting should be the norm.”

A full list of reportable diseases in Maryland can be found at www.mda.state.md.us/animal_health/diseases/index.php