{"id":18515,"date":"2025-08-11T11:20:11","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T10:20:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/?p=18515"},"modified":"2025-08-28T09:28:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-28T08:28:13","slug":"infeccio-per-burkholderia-mallei-borm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/infeccio-per-burkholderia-mallei-borm\/","title":{"rendered":"Infection with Burkholderia mallei (Glanders)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Glanders <\/strong>(known as &#8220;Muermo&#8221; in Spanish and &#8220;Borm&#8221; in Catalan) is a disease that primarily affects equids (horses, donkeys, and mules), but it can also infect carnivores, camelids, and humans (through direct contact with infected animals, fomites, inhalation, or ingestion). <!--more-->It is listed as a notifiable disease by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH, formerly OIE), and also classified as a Category A notifiable disease under EU Delegated Regulation 2020\/687.<\/p>\n<p>It is caused by a gram-negative,\u00a0 biohazard level 3, bacillus: <strong><em>Burkholderia mallei<\/em><\/strong>, which evades the immune response thanks to mechanisms that allow it to survive in phagocytic cells (macrophages) and multiply there. The inflammatory response aimed at controlling the infection leads to the formation of pyogranulomatous nodules, which may ulcerate on mucosal surfaces, forming chronic ulcers and scars with a characteristic star-shaped appearance. The infection can spread via lymphatic and hematogenous routes, causing metastatic forms and lesions in various organs (lungs, liver, spleen, kidneys).<\/p>\n<p>Depending on the entry point, different clinical forms are described:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Nasal form<\/strong>: ulcers, mucopurulent discharge, and star-shaped scars.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Pulmonary form<\/strong>: pulmonary nodules (pyogranulomas) and lymphadenomegaly.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cutaneous form<\/strong>\u00a0(known in English as\u00a0<em>farcy<\/em>): subcutaneous nodules, lymphangitis (inflammation of lymphatic vessels), and abscesses draining yellowish pus.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Asymptomatic carriers may also exist. Horses, being more susceptible, tend to develop chronic forms, while donkeys and mules more often present acute forms when infected.<\/p>\n<p>The linear lesions of the cutaneous form, following the path of lymphatic vessels and with abscesses that may drain their contents, can resemble those of ulcerative lymphangitis (<em>Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis<\/em>) and epizootic lymphangitis (<em>Histoplasma capsulatum var. farciminosum<\/em>). Other skin diseases should also be considered in the differential diagnosis: dermatophytosis, bacterial pyogranulomas (<em>Staphylococcus aureus<\/em>\u00a0and other bacteria), melioidosis (<em>Burkholderia pseudomallei<\/em>), etc.<\/p>\n<p>The disease has been eradicated in Europe, North America, and Australia, but remains endemic in parts of Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. The last reported case in Spain was in 1956, although Germany detected a case in 2016, so the risk of reintroduction is not zero.<\/p>\n<p>If compatible lesions are found, diagnosis is made by culturing and identifying the bacterium from lesion samples (cutaneous nodules or organ nodules). Genetic material can also be detected via PCR. The reference laboratory for diagnosis in Spain is the LCV in Algete.\u00a0(EV)<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_18509\" style=\"width: 577px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18509\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18509\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen2.jpg\" alt=\"Cavall. Forma cut\u00e0nia de de Borm. Pres\u00e8ncia de n\u00f2duls subcutanis i engruiximents dels vasos limf\u00e0tics. Font: MerckVetManual.com Courtesy of Dr. Elisabeth-Lidwien Verdegaal, University of Adelaide.\" width=\"567\" height=\"425\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen2.jpg 567w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen2-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 567px) 100vw, 567px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18509\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Cutaneous form of glanders. Presence of subcutaneous nodules and thickening of lymphatic vessels. Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.merckvetmanual.com\/generalized-conditions\/glanders\/glanders-in-horses-and-other-equids#Etiology_v3274713\">MerckVetManual.com<\/a> Courtesy of Dr. Elisabeth-Lidwien Verdegaal, University of Adelaide.<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18512\" style=\"width: 810px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18512\" class=\"size-large wp-image-18512\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen3-800x524.jpg\" alt=\"Cavall. Forma cut\u00e0nia de de Borm. Pres\u00e8ncia de n\u00f2duls subcutanis i engruiximents dels vasos limf\u00e0tics, alguns dels qual s\u2019ulceren i drenen material purulent de coloraci\u00f3 groguenca. Font: MerckVetManual.com Courtesy of Dr. Elisabeth-Lidwien Verdegaal, University of Adelaide.\" width=\"800\" height=\"524\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen3-800x524.jpg 800w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen3-300x196.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen3-768x503.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen3.jpg 886w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18512\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Cutaneous form of Glanders. Presence of subcutaneous nodules and thickening of the lymphatic vessels, some of which ulcerate and drain purulent material of yellowish color. Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.merckvetmanual.com\/generalized-conditions\/glanders\/glanders-in-horses-and-other-equids#Etiology_v3274713\">MerckVetManual.com<\/a> Courtesy of Dr. Elisabeth-Lidwien Verdegaal, University of Adelaide.<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18494\" style=\"width: 502px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18494\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18494\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen4.jpg\" alt=\"Cavall. Forma cut\u00e0nia del Brom. N\u00f2dul cutani ulcerat. Font: OMSA\" width=\"492\" height=\"540\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen4.jpg 492w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen4-273x300.jpg 273w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 492px) 100vw, 492px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18494\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Cutaneous form of glanders. Ulcerated cutaneous nodule. Source: WOAH<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18524\" style=\"width: 398px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18524\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18524\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/glanders-nodules-ulcerate-vania-santana-cut-SVA.jpg\" alt=\" Cavall. Forma cut\u00e0nia. Fistules cut\u00e0nies al llarg dels vasos limf\u00e0tics del peu. Font: Font: Vaina Santana. SVA.se.\" width=\"388\" height=\"504\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/glanders-nodules-ulcerate-vania-santana-cut-SVA.jpg 388w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/glanders-nodules-ulcerate-vania-santana-cut-SVA-231x300.jpg 231w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 388px) 100vw, 388px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18524\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Cutaneous form. Cutaneous fistulas along the lymphatic vessels of the foot. Source: Vaina Santana.<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sva.se\/djurhaelsa\/djursjukdomar-a-oe\/sjukdomar\/rots-hos-haest\/\"> SVA.se<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18497\" style=\"width: 577px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18497\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18497\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen5.jpg\" alt=\"Cavall. Forma cut\u00e0nia cr\u00f2nica del Brom. Extenses lesions ulceratives cicatritzades. Font: OMSA\" width=\"567\" height=\"425\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen5.jpg 567w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen5-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 567px) 100vw, 567px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18497\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Chronic cutaneous form of glanders. Extensive scarred ulcerative lesions. Source: WOAH<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18500\" style=\"width: 810px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18500\" class=\"size-large wp-image-18500\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen6-800x590.jpg\" alt=\"Ase. Forma pulmonar del Borm. Extensa pneum\u00f2nia amb lesions nodulars piogranulomatoses. Font: USAHA Foreign Animal Diseases (The Gray Book) at http:\/\/www.aphis.usda.gov\/emergency_response\/downloads\/nahems\/fad.pdf\" width=\"800\" height=\"590\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen6-800x590.jpg 800w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen6-300x221.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen6-768x567.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen6.jpg 859w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18500\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Donkey. Pulmonary form of the Borm. Extensive pneumonia with pyogranulomatous nodular lesions. Source: USAHA Foreign Animal Diseases (The Gray Book) at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aphis.usda.gov\/emergency_response\/downloads\/nahems\/fad.pdf\">APHIS-USDA<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18527\" style=\"width: 577px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18527\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18527\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/forma-nassal-Beograd-2017.png\" alt=\"Cavall. Forma nassal. Exemples de lesions a la mucosa nassal. A) lesions agudes nodulars i amb ulceres de diferents mides i b) lesions cr\u00f2niques amb la caracter\u00edstica forma d\u2019estrella. Font: Acta Veterinaria-Beograd 2017 DOI: 10.1515\/acve-2017-0045\" width=\"567\" height=\"183\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/forma-nassal-Beograd-2017.png 567w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/forma-nassal-Beograd-2017-300x97.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 567px) 100vw, 567px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18527\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Nasal shape. Examples of lesions in the nasal mucosa. A) acute nodular lesions with ulcers of different sizes and b) chronic lesions with the characteristic star shape. Source: Acta Veterinaria-Beograd 2017 DOI: 10.1515\/acve-2017-0045<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18521\" style=\"width: 615px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18521\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18521\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/glanders-healing-starshaped-ulcers-vania-santana-cut-SVA.jpg\" alt=\"Cavall. Mucosa oral, lesions cr\u00f2niques cicatritzades en forma d\u2019estrella. Font: Vaina Santana. SVA.se.\" width=\"605\" height=\"473\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/glanders-healing-starshaped-ulcers-vania-santana-cut-SVA.jpg 605w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/glanders-healing-starshaped-ulcers-vania-santana-cut-SVA-300x235.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18521\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Oral mucosa. Chronic star-shaped healed lesions. Source: Vaina Santana. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sva.se\/djurhaelsa\/djursjukdomar-a-oe\/sjukdomar\/rots-hos-haest\/\">SVA.se<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_18503\" style=\"width: 575px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-18503\" class=\"size-full wp-image-18503\" src=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen7.jpg\" alt=\"Cavall. Lesions de Borm. (a) Secreci\u00f3 mucopurulenta nasal. (b) Absc\u00e9s periocular. (c)Exudado catarral a la tr\u00e0quea. (d) Absces pulmonar. Font Nassar et al 2025 J Equine Vet Sci \" width=\"565\" height=\"575\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen7.jpg 565w, https:\/\/sesc.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Borm_Imagen7-295x300.jpg 295w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 565px) 100vw, 565px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-18503\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Horse. Glanders lesions. (a) Nasal mucopurulent discharge. (b) Periocular abscess. (c) Catarrhal exudate in the trachea. (d) Lung abscess. Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.jevs.2024.105248\">Nassar et al 2025 J Equine Vet Sci<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Glanders (known as &#8220;Muermo&#8221; in Spanish and &#8220;Borm&#8221; in Catalan) is a disease that primarily affects equids (horses, donkeys, and mules), but it can also infect carnivores, camelids, and humans (through direct contact with infected animals, fomites, inhalation, or ingestion).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":18507,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[175],"tags":[471,390,482,501,457,472,409],"class_list":["post-18515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-equine-2","tag-cavitat-toracica-en","tag-head-en","tag-infeccioses","tag-mdo-en-2","tag-piel","tag-pulmons-en","tag-zoonoses-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18515"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18515\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sesc.cat\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}