Objective:To investigate the prevalence of methicillin-resistant staphylococci (MRS) which is a potencial risk factor of transmission between animals and humans in different types of horses (harness racing-horses, breeding mares and riding-horses) and to compare the antimicrobial resistance of the isolates. Methods:A total of 191 healthy horses, housed at different locations of the Campania Region (Italy), were included in the study. Nasal swab samples were collected from each nostril of the horses. The mecA gene was detected by a nested PCR technique. Antibiotic susceptibility was tested for each isolate. Results: MRS was isolated from nasal samples of 68/191 (35.6%; 95% CI: 28.9%-42.9%) healthy horses. All isolates were coagulase-negative with the exception of two coagulase-positive MRS strains, identified as Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus pseudintermedius, 2/83 (2.4%; 95%CI: 0.4%-9.2%). Interestingly, both coagulase-positive MRS isolates were from harness racing-horses. These horses also presented a significantly higher positivity for MRS (53.3%; 95%CI: 40.1%-66.1%) than the breeding mares and riding-horses groups. Antibiotic susceptibility testing showed difference between isolates due to different origins except for an almost common high resistance to aminopenicillins, such as ampicillin and amoxicillin. Conclusions:It can be concluded that harness racing-horses may act as a significant reservoir of MRS as compared to breeding mares and riding-horses.

Objective: To update the recent knowledge of the microbiological causes of canine otitis externa in Campania Region (Italy) and the antibiotic susceptibility patterns of the iso-lated strains.
Methods: A total of 122 dogs were examined by otoscopy, and auricular swab samples were collected from both ears in 74 dogs presenting clinical bilateral otitis and from single ears in 48 dogs displaying clinical unilateral otitis. Cytological examination, bacteriological analysis and antimicrobial susceptibility tests were performed.
Results: Thirty-one out of 122 dogs were positive for yeast species (25.4%, 95% con-fidence interval (CI): 18.2%–34.2%) with a higher prevalence of Malassezia pachy-dermatis (21/31 isolates, 67.7%, CI: 48.5%–82.7%), and a total of 91 out of 122 dogs were positive for bacterial species (74.6%;CI:65.8%–81.8%) with a higher prevalence of Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (45/143 isolates, 31.5%, CI: 24.1%–39.8%). These results are the first description of Streptococcus agalactiae-associated otitis. The yeasts isolated showed high levels of susceptibility to all antifungal agents tested; on the con-trary all the isolated bacterial strains were highly resistant to at least four out of ten antimicrobial classes. Both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria showed high resistance to amoxicillin/clavulanate and kanamycin hence they are not recommended as initial empirical therapy for the otitis treatment.
Conclusions: This update illustrates an increase in antibiotic resistances providing an insight into the current knowledge of the therapeutic procedures followed on canine otitis externa in Italy. It also emphasizes the importance of considering the results of the microbiological and sensitivity tests to decide on an appropriate antibiotic therapy.

Objective:To assess normal conjunctival cytological and bacteriological/fungal flora features in the Mediterranean buffalo (Bubalus bubalis).
Methods:Swabs were taken from the inferior conjunctival sac of both eyes of 57 healthy female buffaloes aged 24-36 months, with no evidence of ocular disease, farmed in Campania region (Southern Italy), for microbiological analysis. Conjunctival eye specimens of both eyes were subsequently obtained by a cyto-brush, for cytological analysis. The antimicrobial susceptibility of bacterial isolates was also determined using the disk-diffusion method on Mueller Hinton agar plates.
Results: Cytological examination of conjunctival swab specimens (114 eyes) revealed epithelial cells (basal, intermediate, columnar and superficial) in all samples, whereas neutrophils, lymphocytes and plasma cells were present in 70%, 10%and 2%of samples, respectively. Microorganisms, for a total of 261 aerobic bacteria and 6 fungi, were isolated from 112/114 conjunctival samples (98.25%;95%confidence interval (CI):93.18–99.70). Only two conjunctival swabs did not yield bacteria and/or fungi (2/114, 1.75%;95% CI:0.30–6.82). Gram-positive aerobes were most commonly cultured (181/261, 69.35%;95%CI: 63.31–74.81), with Enterococcus faecium and Staphylococcus lentus predominating. Escherichia coli was the most frequently isolated as Gram-negative bacteria (80/261, 30.65%;95%CI:25.19–36.69). The antimicrobial resistance patterns of the isolated bacteria showed amoxycillin/clavulanic acid and cephalothin as the least sensitive antibiotics for both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
Conclusions: These results provided first information on normal conjunctival ocular microflora and cytological features in Mediterranean buffalo.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the prevalence of methicillin-resistant staphylococci (MRS) which is a potencial risk factor of transmission between animals and humans in different types of horses (harness racing-horses, breeding mares and riding-horses) and to compare the antimicrobial resistance of the isolates.

METHODSA total of 191 healthy horses, housed at different locations of the Campania Region (Italy), were included in the study. Nasal swab samples were collected from each nostril of the horses. The mecA gene was detected by a nested PCR technique. Antibiotic susceptibility was tested for each isolate.

RESULTSMRS was isolated from nasal samples of 68/191 (35.6%; 95% CI: 28.9%-42.9%) healthy horses. All isolates were coagulase-negative with the exception of two coagulase-positive MRS strains, identified as Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus pseudintermedius, 2/83 (2.4%; 95% CI: 0.4%-9.2%). Interestingly, both coagulase-positive MRS isolates were from harness racing-horses. These horses also presented a significantly higher positivity for MRS (53.3%; 95% CI: 40.1%-66.1%) than the breeding mares and riding-horses groups. Antibiotic susceptibility testing showed difference between isolates due to different origins except for an almost common high resistance to aminopenicillins, such as ampicillin and amoxicillin.

CONCLUSIONSIt can be concluded that harness racing-horses may act as a significant reservoir of MRS as compared to breeding mares and riding-horses.

Animals ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; pharmacology ; Coagulase ; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial ; Female ; Horse Diseases ; epidemiology ; microbiology ; Horses ; Italy ; epidemiology ; Male ; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ; drug effects ; isolation & purification ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; veterinary ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; veterinary ; Prevalence ; Staphylococcal Infections ; epidemiology ; microbiology ; veterinary

Objective: To update the recent knowledge of the microbiological causes of canine otitis externa in Campania Region (Italy) and the antibiotic susceptibility patterns of the isolated strains. Methods: A total of 122 dogs were examined by otoscopy, and auricular swab samples were collected from both ears in 74 dogs presenting clinical bilateral otitis and from single ears in 48 dogs displaying clinical unilateral otitis. Cytological examination, bacteriological analysis and antimicrobial susceptibility tests were performed. Results: Thirty-one out of 122 dogs were positive for yeast species (25.4%, 95% confidence interval (CI): 18.2%-34.2%) with a higher prevalence of Malassezia pachydermatis (21/31 isolates, 67.7%, CI: 48.5%-82.7%), and a total of 91 out of 122 dogs were positive for bacterial species (74.6%; CI: 65.8%-81.8%) with a higher prevalence of Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (45/143 isolates, 31.5%, CI: 24.1%-39.8%). These results are the first description of Streptococcus agalactiae-associated otitis. The yeasts isolated showed high levels of susceptibility to all antifungal agents tested; on the contrary all the isolated bacterial strains were highly resistant to at least four out of ten antimicrobial classes. Both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria showed high resistance to amoxicillin/clavulanate and kanamycin hence they are not recommended as initial empirical therapy for the otitis treatment. Conclusions: This update illustrates an increase in antibiotic resistances providing an insight into the current knowledge of the therapeutic procedures followed on canine otitis externa in Italy. It also emphasizes the importance of considering the results of the microbiological and sensitivity tests to decide on an appropriate antibiotic therapy.

Objective: To assess normal conjunctival cytological and bacteriological/fungal flora features in the Mediterranean buffalo (. Bubalus bubalis). Methods: Swabs were taken from the inferior conjunctival sac of both eyes of 57 healthy female buffaloes aged 24-36 months, with no evidence of ocular disease, farmed in Campania region (Southern Italy), for microbiological analysis. Conjunctival eye specimens of both eyes were subsequently obtained by a cyto-brush, for cytological analysis. The antimicrobial susceptibility of bacterial isolates was also determined using the disk-diffusion method on Mueller Hinton agar plates. Results: Cytological examination of conjunctival swab specimens (114 eyes) revealed epithelial cells (basal, intermediate, columnar and superficial) in all samples, whereas neutrophils, lymphocytes and plasma cells were present in 70%, 10% and 2% of samples, respectively. Microorganisms, for a total of 261 aerobic bacteria and 6 fungi, were isolated from 112/114 conjunctival samples [98.25%; 95% confidence interval (. CI): 93.18-99.70]. Only two conjunctival swabs did not yield bacteria and/or fungi (2/114, 1.75%; 95% CI: 0.30-6.82). Gram-positive aerobes were most commonly cultured (181/261, 69.35%; 95% CI: 63.31-74.81), with Enterococcus faecium and Staphylococcus lentus predominating. Escherichia coli was the most frequently isolated as Gram-negative bacteria (80/261, 30.65%; 95% CI: 25.19-36.69). The antimicrobial resistance patterns of the isolated bacteria showed amoxycillin/clavulanic acid and cephalothin as the least sensitive antibiotics for both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Conclusions: These results provided first information on normal conjunctival ocular microflora and cytological features in Mediterranean buffalo.