An overview of infectious causes of abortion in Ireland in 2013

Abstract

Bovine abortions cause major financial loss to the farming industry of Ireland each year. The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the prevalence and trends of common infectious bovine abortifacients in Ireland in 2013. It will also examine in detail the aetiology of the identified abortifacients, the pathophysiology and in some cases the available preventative and curative measures which can be taken. This thesis has used quantitative data extracted from yearly reports compiled by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Marine and the Agri-Food Biosciences Institute of Ireland. The findings from this thesis demonstrate that while there were many common causes of abortion in cattle in Ireland in 2013 such as Salmonella dublin and Neospora caninum, the most common cause in 2013 was Trueperella pyogenes, detected in 208 out of the 3517 foetuses or foetal samples submitted.