New treatment options against surging ILT

摘要

A highly contagious and potentially deadly disease that affects the respiratory tract of chickens has become more prevalent in commercial operations throughout the Americas, specialists warn. The spread of the disease infectious laryngotracheitis, orILT, has poultry producers looking for new ways to deal with the costly illness. A new vaccine provides a solution. "It's become a serious problem over the past 3 or 4 years in both North and South America," says Dr. Guillermo Zavala, associate professorand poultry researcher at the University of Georgia. "It's impacting every country, with very, very few exceptions, from Ontario, Canada, all the way down to Argentina." At a seminar on ILT at this year's International Poultry Expo in Atlanta, Zavala told poultry veterinarians and producers there's no clear explanation for the surge in ILT.