Impact case study database

As part of the IPHP, Drane and Shave have completed 543 cardiovascular assessments across the four great ape species (Gorillas, Chimpanzees, Bonobos and Orang-utans) in 21 different collections across 10 different countries. This includes the World’s largest wild-born chimpanzee population (n=339) in Africa. IPHP research has resulted in immediate, medium and long-term impact on the survival of individual animals and the ongoing care, management and treatment of individual animals living in zoological collections and great ape sanctuaries. It has also informed the World’s largest ever Chimpanzee re-introduction programme of animals back into the wild [E2, E8].

Immediate Impact: At the point of cardiac assessment, the presence of heart disease in individual animals has been ruled-in or ruled-out. For some animals this resulted in changes in treatment plans or care. For example, based on our work, two chimpanzees with suspected cardiac disease had ECG loop recorders surgically implanted to continuously monitor cardiac rhythm. On follow-up, one animal was found to have malignant arrhythmias and was started on therapy. Ongoing monitoring by the team has subsequently shown that the arrhythmic burden in this animal has been reduced [E1, E9]. Similarly, during an IPHP examination in 2015 a female chimpanzee at Tchimpounga sanctuary was found to have cardiac tamponade due to cardiac failure. Her treatment and care to the present day has been guided by Drane and Shave’s work [E2]. Based on the knowledge and skills developed since the start of the IPHP project, the team have also consulted in relation to the potential of cardiac involvement in both a viral outbreak in an Orangutan sanctuary (Nyaru Mentang) [E11] and an unknown disease causing sudden death in chimpanzees (Tacugama) . In animals, without disease, each cardiac examination creates a reference set of “healthy” cardiac data that has been shared with the relevant care team, which will be of clinical relevance in future assessments of heart disease.

From the outset, the collection of data has involved close collaboration with veterinary care teams, and has facilitated significant on-site professional development related to the assessment of cardiac health for veterinarians in 21 different great ape collections including the Jane Goodall Institute – Tchimpounga Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Centre, Zoological Society of London, Chester Zoo, Paignton Zoo [E10], Blackpool Zoo, Ape Action Africa, and Limbe Wildlife Sanctuary. This collaborative, multidisciplinary, approach was formally recognised by the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquaria (BIAZA) in November 2013, when the IPHP received the award for significant advances in zoo and wildlife medicine [E5].

Medium-term Impact: In addition to the education of individual professionals that occurred during the assessment of animals, since 2011, Drane and Shave have also been invited to present their research findings and lead educational and professional development workshops at numerous key and highly prestigious veterinary conferences and meetings (e.g., The Great Ape Health Masterclass at the Joint American, European and International Veterinary Societies Annual Conference, Zoological Society of London Great Ape Education Days, Pan African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA) veterinary meetings, and to the Orangutan Veterinary Advisory Group (OVAG) meetings) [E3, E4]. Moreover, veterinary professionals from the UK and overseas have visited Drane and Shave to improve their knowledge, understanding and practical skillset. These formal and informal educational events have provided theoretical and hands-on teaching activities for ~200 veterinary professionals involved in the care of captive, semi-captive and wild great apes from across the world [E3, E4]. Accordingly, the reach of the research goes beyond captive zoo populations to those animals being cared for in sanctuaries and in the wild. The relevance of Drane and Shave’s work in relation to the training of veterinary professionals and the immediate and long-term care of animals has been recognised through endorsement from a number of national and international organisations involved in great ape care including BIAZA [E5], PASA and OVAG [E3, E4].

Long-term Impact: The generation of standardised cardiac assessment protocols and the development of normal reference data for cardiac health in wild born chimpanzees is of clinical relevance for all chimpanzees being assessed for heart disease. These data have and will continue to facilitate better care, treatment and management of animals in zoos, sanctuaries and the wild . They also form the basis of the recent PASA veterinary guidelines for the assessment of cardiac health in great apes written by Drane and Shave ( https://umnadvet.instructure.com/courses/321/pages/ape-cardiac-health; 12). Beyond the initial diagnosis, individual treatment and longitudinal monitoring of animals with disease, the data collected by the IPHP have also informed the largest ever Chimpanzee re-introduction programme in Africa [E2, E8]. Specifically, using the normative reference data the IPHP has helped the Jane Goodall Institute’s veterinary team select healthy animals, free of cardiac disease, to join the group of Chimpanzees being prepared for release. Accordingly, the work has not only had significant impact on individual animals and collections in zoos and sanctuaries but is also contributing to ongoing efforts aimed at ensuring the survival of the species [E2]. In addition to zoological advances this work has and will continue to examine the evolutionary origins of cardiovascular disease in humans [E7].