A risk assessment of equine piroplasmosis entry, exposure and consequences in the UK.

Summary

# Equine Piroplasmosis: A Growing Risk for UK Horse Health Equine piroplasmosis remains absent from the UK despite gaps in disease surveillance and the documented presence of carrier animals within the domestic horse population—a paradox that prompted Coultous and colleagues to conduct a formal risk assessment examining the disease's potential for establishment. Using a structured epidemiological framework, the researchers evaluated pathways for pathogen entry, factors governing exposure risk, and consequences of establishment across multiple equine sectors. Their analysis identified several credible introduction routes, particularly through imported horses and vectors, alongside circumstances that could facilitate transmission in UK conditions; whilst the probability of endemic establishment currently remains relatively low, the assessment highlighted critical gaps in detection capacity that could delay recognition of an outbreak. The economic modelling predicted substantial impacts on breeding, sport, and leisure sectors should the disease become established, alongside considerable animal welfare implications for affected individuals. Practitioners across all disciplines should familiarise themselves with clinical presentations of piroplasmosis and maintain heightened awareness when examining horses with compatible clinical signs—particularly those with recent import history—as early identification remains the most cost-effective intervention available to the UK equine industry.

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Key Findings

• •Equine piroplasmosis is currently not endemic in the UK despite absence of formal surveillance and presence of carrier horses in the population
• •Pathogen establishment would have significant welfare and economic impacts on the UK equine industry
• •The disease is often overlooked by UK equine practitioners despite biosecurity risks

Conditions Studied

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