Merging clues with progressive thought to solve mysteries in the areas of infectious disease and neonatal medicine will be spotlighted when renowned equine internist John Madigan, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM, ACAW, delivers the Frank J. Milne State-of-the-Art Lecture on Dec. 8 during the American Association of Equine Practitioners' (AAEP) 60th Annual Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah.

During Madigan’s lecture, titled “Gumshoe Sleuthing in the World of Infectious Disease and Neonatology: Discoveries That Changed Equine and Human Health,” attendees will be immersed into the process of infectious disease investigation, specifically related to mysterious clusters of fevers of unknown origin and pursuit of causes of colitis symptoms in adult horses. From there, the investigation will turn to specific disorders of the equine neonate and the science that translates to actions that can be taken by practitioners in the field.

Madigan is Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis), School of Veterinary Medicine, as well as clinician in equine medicine and neonatal care in the William R. Pritchard Veterinary Teaching Hospital. He received his veterinary degree from UC Davis in 1975 and is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and the American College of Animal Welfare.

In 1975, Madigan discovered Anaplasma phagocytophilia infection in Mendocino County, Calif., ultimately leading to a National Institute of Health grant with Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine that described infection in humans and the tick vectors. Madigan’s seminal work elucidating the life cycle and transmission of Neorickettsia risticii (Potomac horse fever's causative agent) revealed the infection was caused by ingestion of aquatic insects and not vectored by ticks or other biting insects