Authors : Nagwa Osman El Shafie and Abdelmelik Ibrahim Khalafalla
Abstract: Infectious tenosynovitis and ruptured gastrocnemious tendons were studied in broiler chickens in Sudan. Two broiler farms (A & B) located in Khartoum State were selected. Clinical signs of leg problems in grower parent broiler started to appear at 11 – 12 weeks of age. The most important clinical signs which were seen in such cases, included rupture of gastrocnemius tendons, inability to walk, unilateral extension of legs, growth retardation and swelling of the hock joints. Out of 13 specimens, reovirus and adenovirus antigens were detected in 7 and 2, respectively using Agar gel diffusion test (AGDT). Reovirus and adenovirus were isolated on the chorioallantoic membrane of chicken embryonated eggs from processed intestine samples and synovial fluids. In chicken kidney cell culture, reovirus isolates replicated and caused marked cytopathic effects whereas adenovirus isolates did not. In both farms, the seropositivity as measured by means of AGDT was higher (45.4%) for adenovirus than for reovirus (8.2%). Bacteria isolated from the synovial fluids included Staphyllococcus aueous, Corynebacterim spp and E. coli.
Nagwa Osman El Shafie and Abdelmelik Ibrahim Khalafalla , 2005. Investigation on Viral Arthritis in Broiler Chickens in Khartoum, Sudan . Journal of Animal and Veterinary Advances, 4: 145-149.