APPLICATION OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN ANIMAL HEALTH

Shrikant Kulkarni, A.M. Kotresh & Santosh Sarangamath

Livestock wealth is very precious for a developing country like India. In India, animal husbandry is no longer a subsidiary to agriculture or a backyard vocation. Animal husbandry has metamorphosed into an industry and the latest reports suggest that the contribution of animal husbandry sector to the GDP of the nation is substantially higher despite the meager input. Animal husbandry offers a better scope for marginal farmers whose income from agriculture is dwindling fast due to vagaries of monsoon, fragmentation of landholdings, pest problems, poor pricing etc. Though the growth of livestock industry is very promising, in order to make India a global leader in animal husbandry, it is imperative to integrate it with developments in other fields. The developments in Information Technology over the past few decades are tremendous and offer great potential in improving animal health through various measures like effective disease forecasting, rapid and accurate disease diagnosis, modern therapeutic measures etc.

Veterinary Informatics is the discipline concerned with the application of information science, engineering, and computer technology to support veterinary health care. Veterinary informatics and the larger field of medical informatics is often called health care informatics or biomedical informatics and forms part of the wider domain of e-health. Applications of Information Technology in different aspects of animal health are discussed below.

Geo-Informatics Technologies in Animal Disease Surveillance

Early identification of an infectious disease outbreak is an important first step towards implementing effective disease interventions and reducing resulting mortality and morbidity. Both geographical and seasonal distributions of many infectious diseases are linked to climate, therefore the possibility of using seasonal climate forecasts as predictive indicators in disease early warning systems (EWS) has long been a focus of interest. Geographic Information System (GIS), Remote Sensing (RS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) are the three commonly used veterinary geo-informatics technologies employed in this information era for rapid worldwide communication of data for management of animal diseases.

Geographic Information System is a computerized database management system for capturing, storing, checking, integrating, manipulating, analyzing and displaying data related to location. Global Positioning System is a data collection technology whereas GIS is a data analysis technology. What separates GIS from other types of information/databases is that everything is based on location (geo reference). This geo-referenced information is nothing more than “where things are,” such as latitude and longitude coordinates. Today, GIS is being utilized for disease monitoring in the United States of America. The USDA’s Veterinary Services utilizes the benefits of comprehensive and integrated monitoring and surveillance to demonstrate where a particular disease does or does not occur. For example, one GIS map can show the population density of any agricultural species using National Agricultural Statistics Service census data. A second map can show all disease monitoring testing done in a specific timeframe. A comparison can then be made to make sure that disease monitoring and testing corresponds to the population density of that species in the area. Finally, a third map can be generated to depict changes or areas to concentrate on for future monitoring. This will help by assuring that funds for monitoring are spent in the proper areas.

Along with GIS, Remote Sensing has revolutionized the way scientists handle and analyze geographic data. Remote sensing refers to the acquisition of geographic data without making physical contact with the area of study. Today, remote sensing generally pertains to satellite images and aerial photography/imaging, both of which are sensitive to portions of the electromagnetic spectrum not visible to the human eye or most cameras (e.g. infrared, micro wave). The ability to measure invisible energy and to record vast amounts of high resolution data from great distances is a very powerful tool.

Information Technology in Disease Diagnosis

Medical diagnostic technology has made rapid strides with the advent of the computer. Many of the advances in human diagnostic technologies are translated into veterinary medicine in developed countries. Newer branches like Imaging, Radiodiagnosis, Telemedicine, Telesonography and Teleradiology have emerged. Broadly, the instrumentation/devices which have been created with modern technology in the present digital age are listed below.

1) Image Intensifier TV system (IITV): Generally used in orthopaedic surgery. This facilitates fracture repair using a small incision thus achieving minimal invasive surgical manoeuvre. IITV helps in X-ray imaging of the intrao-perative site for orthopaedic manipulations, and the same can be stored for future reference.

2) Ultrasound: In small animal and equine practice, ultrasound is routinely used as a diagnostic aid. Applications of ultrasound in ruminants have not been fully exploited, except in pregnancy. There could be numerous organs which can be scanned using an ultrasound scanner. Ultrasonography seems to have a promising future in veterinary medicine, particularly for the assessment of intra/peri-abdominal disease. Ultrasonography is viewed as the single most versatile addition to the non-invasive and non-surgical armamentarium of the veterinary clinician since the advent of the fiber optic endoscope.

3) Computerized Tomography (CT): CT has been an extremely significant development which has a unique cross-sectional imaging ability useful for the diagnosis of tumors, malformations, inflammation, degenerative and vascular diseases and trauma. CT is a diagnostic modality that is fundamentally different from a simple X-ray; an organ is scanned in successive layers by a narrow beam of X-rays in such a way that the transmission of X-ray across a particular layer can be measured by a computer, and used to construct a picture of the internal structure.

4) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI): MRI is a highly sensitive and non-invasive technique providing accurate and detailed anatomic images with good contrast and spatial resolution. However, in veterinary medicine, MRI is still in its infancy and its use is infrequent. To date, MRI has been used in developed countries in clinical cases as well as a research tool especially for CNS diseases in small animals. MRI has a wide spectrum of applications. It can be used for imaging all body regions in small animals, but only the extremities and the head can be imaged in large animals. The newer applications of MRI are MR angiography and MR spectroscopy. It is especially used to differentiate an inflammatory process from a neoplastic mass, tumors from peri-tumoral edema. It is more specific and sensitive in detecting, localizing and differentiating osteomyelitis, cellulites and abscess.

5) Nuclear Scintigraphy: Nuclear scintigraphy is a highly sensitive advanced procedure in which radioisotopes are used to detect the functional abnormalities of the body system. The interpretation is based on the appearance of the increased (hot spots) or decreased (cold spots) radioactivity regions. For eg. an active process is indicated by a hot spot while a dull process like lack of perfusion is indicated by cold spot. Nuclear scintigraphy has been used to detect functional disorders of the kidney, liver, lungs, GI tract, thyroid gland and many other organs. It is very useful in the diagnosis of occult lameness, lung perfusion and ventilation and patency of the ureter in both large and small animals. Also used for vertebral column imaging and monitoring the progress of fracture healing and in tumor detection.

6) Digital Subtraction Angiography (DSA): DSA is a radiographic modality which allows dynamic imaging of the vascular system following intravascular injection of iodinated X-ray contrast media, through the use of image intensification, enhancement of the iodine signal and digital processing of the image data. Temporal subtraction of the images obtained during the first arterial phase of injection of the contrast medium from the images obtained before and after contrast medium administration yield images which are devoid of bone and soft tissue. This imaging modality plays an important role in highlighting the vascular pathologies like stenosis etc.

7) Laparoscopy: Laparoscopy has been a valuable diagnostic and therapeutic tool in human clinical medicine. Only in the last 15 years, its use has been extensively in various animal species for research and clinical diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. The most advantageous characteristic of laparoscopy is that it allows direct examination of abdominal cavity with only minimal and superficial surgical intervention. Thoracoscopy has been employed in humans for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the pleura, lung, mediastinum, great vessels, pericardium and oesophagus. Visceral inspection of the thoracic cavity by thoracoscopy has been used to provide a more accurate diagnosis and prognosis in horses affected with pleuropneumonia and other thoracic and oesophageal disorders. Thoracoscopy allows visualization and biopsy of a large surface of the lung and provides adequate specimen for histo-pathological diagnosis.

8) Endoscopy: It is a minimal invasive diagnostic modality which aids in documenting mucosal inflammation, hyperemia, active bleeding, irregular mucosal surface etc. and facilitates biopsy in tubular organs like GI tract, respiratory and the urogenital systems.

9) Pulse Oximetry: It has the unique advantage of continuously monitoring the saturation of haemoglobin with oxygen easily and noninvasively, thus providing a measure of cardio-respiratory function. The fundamental physical property that allows the pulse oximeter to measure the oxygen saturation of hemoglobin is that blood changes color as hemoglobin absorbs varying amounts of light dependent on its saturation with oxygen. Hence, pulse oximetry remains the standard of care during anesthesia as well as in the recovery room and intensive care unit.

Artificial Intelligence in Health Management

Artificial intelligence may be defined by comparing computer and human functions. If the computer performs a task that seems intelligent when it is done by humans it can be said to be exhibiting artificial intelligence. In medicine, most artificial intelligence research has been devoted to creating computer systems that contain detailed information about a specific medical subject. By focusing relevant knowledge on the problems facing the physician, these programs are designed to act like consultants and thereby have the potential of expanding the practitioner’s expertise.

Expert systems are computer programs that typically contain large amounts of knowledge for making decisions about specific problem domains such as an area of medicine. In medicine, several important experimental expert systems have been developed. For example: INTERNIST -Diagnosis in internal medicine, PIP - Renal disease, VM - Ventilator Management, PUFF - Pulmonary function and ATTENDING - Anesthetic Management.

Information Technology in Instrumentation

Another important area of contribution of Information Technology is in the instrumentation side. The modern molecular methods of diagnosis require sophisticated electronic equipments. It is impossible for a researcher to have sufficient knowledge in electronics to handle these equipments To simplify this, all the modern equipments like ELISA reader, HPLC, RIA, UV Spectrophotometer, Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer, Flowcytometer, freeze drier, ultra low freezer, PCR machine etc., are now controlled by microcomputers and user-friendly software are provided to operate them. With this software, even a beginner can start handling these equipments with minimal training.

Information Technology in Data Analysis

Analysis of data is another important area in animal health. The data collected from outbreaks over a period of time has to be analyzed statistically to develop models and forecast future incidences of the disease. As we know, manual analysis is error-prone, besides being time consuming. Many user-friendly and simple statistical packages are available that can do the same task efficiently.

Information Technology in Molecular Biology

One of the most important areas of animal health is the analysis of genomes. Genomic analysis gains importance since it is the irrefutable form of diagnosis. To develop gene probes, the entire genome has to be mapped. After mapping, the unique areas have to be indentified comparing it with the genome of other infectious agents. Though the genome is very small in size, the number of bases in each genome is beyond manual comparison. Many software are available that can compare the genome with existing genomes in a gene bank to identify unique areas. Such software also provides scope for developing a phylogenetic tree, molecular clock and for developing primers for PCR reaction. The phylogenetic tree and molecular clock are essential for molecular biologists to arrive at possible origins of the virus. This finding gains more significance if the virus strains are immunologically distinct.

Information Technology in Simulation Studies

Another area where IT can contribute significantly is the simulation of in vivo conditions. Certain advanced graphics based software offer best solutions for this. Trafficking of etiological agents, proteins etc. in between the cells can be studied using this software. Study on these trafficking patterns is essential to develop vaccines for cell associated viruses and intra cellular bacteria. The role of graphics based software in studying the three dimensional structures of antigen and antibody is also important to analyze the interactions between them in vivo. Interaction of antigen and antibody is essential to study the pathogenesis of any infectious diseases. Graphics based software also offer great scope as educational aids.

Apart from what has been mentioned above, Information Technology contributes significantly in a number of other areas and is bound to play an important role in improving animal health, thereby benefitting a majority of our population which are dependent on agriculture and allied activities.

Excerpt from 'Information Technology in Veterinary Science' (2009), New India Publishing Agency, New Delhi. ISBN 978-81-908512-4-4. More details here.