Unit VETERINARY TROPICAL PATHOLOGY
- Course
- Veterinary medicine
- Study-unit Code
- GP005419
- Curriculum
- In all curricula
- Teacher
- Valentina Stefanetti
- Teachers
-
- Valentina Stefanetti
- Hours
- 26 ore - Valentina Stefanetti
- CFU
- 2
- Course Regulation
- Coorte 2023
- Offered
- 2025/26
- Learning activities
- Caratterizzante
- Area
- Discipline delle malattie infettive ed infestive
- Academic discipline
- VET/05
- Type of study-unit
- Obbligatorio (Required)
- Type of learning activities
- Attività formativa monodisciplinare
- Language of instruction
- Italian
- Contents
- This course focuses on major tropical diseases, some of which are currently emerging or becoming endemic in our country. Emphasis is placed on their economic impact in the 21st century. The program provides in-depth coverage of transmission pathways, diagnostic techniques, and preventive strategies, with a One Health perspective where applicable.
- Reference texts
- Malattie infettive degli animali Point Veterinaire Italie (2023)
O.M. Radostits, J.H. Arundel, Clive C. Gay: Veterinary Medicine: a textbook of the diseases of cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and horses, Ed. Saunders, 2007, 10 edizione.
Benazzi P., Animal Health Law Il nuovo Regolamento di Polizia veterinaria Esculapio 2023..
OIE Manual (Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals 2012) http://www.oie.int/international-standard-setting/terrestrial-manual/access-online/)
Teaching material used by the lecturer during the lesson and available in Unistudium
https://www.unistudium.unipg.it - Educational objectives
- The main objective of this course is to provide students with a solid foundation for studying some of the most relevant tropical diseases, with the goal of improving their understanding, enabling their inclusion among differential diagnoses, and facilitating prompt identification and management to limit their spread. Special attention is devoted to the knowledge of both direct and indirect prophylactic measures, in accordance with current national and international regulations. D1- KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING Through this course, students will strengthen their comprehension of host–pathogen–environment interactions, the etiopathogenesis and epidemiology of tropical diseases, and the socio-economic significance of major zoonotic agents. They will learn how these diseases spread within animal and human populations, with particular emphasis on emerging diseases and contributing factors. Students will be able to identify clinical signs and lesions, understand commonly used diagnostic techniques and their limitations, and acquire knowledge of applicable prophylactic plans, vaccination protocols, and therapeutic approaches for the main animal species involved. They will also gain insight into biosecurity measures and hygienic management of livestock farms, along with relevant regulatory frameworks for prevention and control. D2- ABILITY TO APPLY KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING Upon completion of the course, students will be able to recognize the clinical signs suggestive of infectious tropical diseases, propose appropriate differential diagnoses, and select the most suitable diagnostic protocols based on clinical and epidemiological data. They will be capable of interpreting laboratory results and planning preventive measures, including vaccination strategies, considering cost–benefit evaluations. D3- AUTONOMY OF JUDGMENT The course aims to promote independent judgment, enabling students to critically manage the infectious diseases discussed based on an integrated understanding of pathogenesis, diagnostics, and prevention. D4- COMMUNICATION SKILLS Students will develop the ability to communicate scientific concepts clearly and effectively, using appropriate technical language and presentation tools such as PowerPoint. D5- LEARNING ABILITY Students will also be expected to demonstrate autonomous learning skills, apply critical reasoning to diagnostic and preventive strategies, and consult scientific literature and bibliographic sources to support their professional growth. Day-one competences ESEVET SOP 2023:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38
- Prerequisites
- Teaching methods
- The main objective of this teaching is to provide the student with the basics to tackle the study of some of the main tropical diseases with the aim of providing useful information for the knowledge of these diseases, inserting them among the possible differential diagnoses, and arriving quickly at a diagnosis in order to limit its spread. Knowledge of direct and indirect prophylaxis measures in relation to the provisions of the Veterinary Police Regulations and the OIE Manual are also fundamental.
Specifically, the studende must:
D1- KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING ABILITY
- To improve the basic knowledge concerning the relations between guests, pathogens and the environment
- Know the etiology-pathogenetic and epidemiological aspects of tropical diseases
- Know the main zoonotic agents, underlining their socio-economic significance
- Know how diseases spread in animal and human populations by emphasizing the importance of emerging diseases and factors
that determine them
- Know the main clinical signs and lesions that characterize the diseases addressed
- Know the main diagnostic methods applied and their limits
- Know the direct and indirect prophylaxis plans to be applied to individual diseases
- Know the vaccines and the main vaccination protocols in the different animal species treated
- Know any therapeutic protocols
- Know the basics of the application of biosecurity measures and the hygienic-health management of farms.
- Know the national and international legislation concerning prevention and control.
D2- ABILITY TO APPLY KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
At the end of the course the student will:
- Know how to recognize the main clinical signs that characterize diseases on the basis of which to formulate a suspicious diagnosis taking into account the possible differential diagnoses
- Know how to identify and apply the most appropriate diagnostic protocol taking into consideration the clinical picture and the epidemiological situation
- Know how to interpret the laboratory results related to the diseases addressed
- Know how to set up preventive interventions based on the application of direct and indirect prophylaxis measures and surveillance plans against
infectious diseases of animals and zoonoses.
- Know how to identify the most appropriate vaccination protocol taking into consideration the risk / benefit analysis
D3- AUTONOMY OF JUDGMENT
The student must be able to recognize and manage the main infectious diseases faced during the course taking into consideration the knowledge acquired on:
- Aetiopathetic aspects of the treated microorganisms
- Clinical signs and injuries
- Diagnosis with reference to laboratory tests
- Measures of prophylaxis and vaccination protocols
D4 - COMMUNICATION SKILLS
The student will:
- Demonstrate language properties and use appropriate terminology
- Know how to organize and present a coherent discourse, using technical terminology, on the various aspects concerning tropical diseases
- Know how to communicate to larger forums with the help of power point
D5- LEARNING SKILLS
At the end of the course the student should:
- Possess a sufficient mastery of the subject matter in order to have sufficient knowledge useful for the continuation of the course of study and for the
future professional life
- Possess diagnostic skills based on an appropriate appeal to the laboratory and a critical interpretation of the results obtained
- Know how to consult and understand scientific texts and other bibliographic sources - Other information
- Extended program
- Introduction. Definition of tropical diseases; listing of tropical diseases according to their spreading capability Diseases caused by viruses : Fam. Paramyxoviridae: peste des petits ruminants, Virus Hendra, Virus Nipah Fam. Poxviridae: Lumpy skin disease, sheeppox and goatopox viruses Order Bunyavirales: Schmallenberg disease, Rift valley fever, Nairobi sheep disease Fam. Asfarviridae: African swine fever Family Flaviviridae: Japanese encephalitis complex:Usutu virus West Nile virus Fam. Togaviride: Estern equine encephalitis; Western equine encephalitis; Venezuelan equine encephalitis Fam. Reoviridae: African horse sickness, Blue tongue, Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease Fam. Herpesviridae: Malignant catarrhal fever Diseases caused by bacteria: -Fam Anaplasmataceae: Heartwater; Canine Anaplosmosis; bovine anaplasmosis, Canine Erlichiosis - Fam. Coxiellaceae: Q fever. Fam. Borreliaceae: Lyme Disease Fam. Burkholderiaceae: Glanders, Melioidosis Family Mycoplasmataceae: Contagious bovine pleuropneumonia Prion Diaseases Isolation and typing techniques of bacterial and viral agents (3 hours practical lesson) Serological tests (3 hours practical lesson) Clinical rotation (2 hours)
- Obiettivi Agenda 2030 per lo sviluppo sostenibile
- Zero hunger
Health and wellness
Responsible consumption and production
Life on earth