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Topic:Diagnostic Technique
Diagnostic techniques in equine medicine encompass a range of procedures and tools used to identify diseases, injuries, or other health conditions in horses. These techniques include imaging methods such as radiography, ultrasonography, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), as well as laboratory tests like blood work and tissue biopsies. Each diagnostic method provides specific information that can aid in the assessment and management of equine health issues. Radiography is commonly used for evaluating bone structures, while ultrasonography is useful for soft tissue examination. MRI offers detailed images of both soft and hard tissues, though its use is limited by cost and availability. Laboratory tests can detect biochemical and hematological changes indicative of disease. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the development, application, and efficacy of various diagnostic techniques in equine veterinary practice.
Assessment of scintigraphic and thermographic changes after focused extracorporeal shock wave therapy on the origin of the suspensory ligament and the fourth metatarsal bone in horses without lameness. To monitor the effect of focused extra-corporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) on bone and bone-tendon junction of horses without lameness by use of nuclear scintigraphy and thermography. Methods: 6 warmblood horses without lameness. Methods: The origin of the suspensory ligament at the metacarpus (OSL-MC) and the fourth metatarsal bone were treated at 2 time points (days 0 and 16) with 2,000 shocks applied by a focused ESWT device at an energy flux density of 0.15 mJ/mm2. One forelimb and 1 hind limb were treated, and the contralateral limbs served as controls. To document the effect of focused E...
Equine herpesvirus 2 (EHV-2) infection in thoroughbred horses in Argentina. Equine herpesvirus 2 is a gamma-herpesvirus that infects horses worldwide. Although EHV-2 has been implicated in immunosuppression in foals, upper respiratory tract disease, conjunctivitis, general malaise and poor performance, its precise role as a pathogen remains uncertain. The purpose of the present study was to analyse the incidence of EHV-2 in an Argentinean horse population and correlate it with age and clinical status of the animals. Results: A serological study on 153 thoroughbred racing horses confirmed the presence of EHV-2 in the Argentinean equine population. A virus neutralizatio...
A novel method to estimate the stiffness of the equine back. Diagnosis of back problems in equine orthopedics can be a difficult task. The aim of our study was to develop a new method for estimating the stiffness of the equine back in vivo. We measured the activity of the long back muscle at two locations on both sides at thoracic vertebrae T12 and T16 of 15 horses flexing and extending their back at stance using telemetric surface electromyography, while simultaneously recording the motion of the back with a video camera system. Out of these paired data sets we computed a transfer function in the frequency domain and evaluated its capability of capturi...
Evaluation of latex agglutination kits for detection of fibrin(ogen) degradation products and D-dimer in healthy horses and horses with severe colic. Fibrin(ogen) degradation products (FDPs) and D-dimer are sensitive indicators of excessive fibrinolysis due to disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) in dogs. To the authors' knowledge, latex-agglutination-based plasma FDP and D-dimer assays have not been validated for use in horses. Objective: To determine: 1) sensitivity and specificity of latex agglutination serum and plasma FDP and D-dimer assays for diagnosis of DIC; and 2) their prognostic value in horses with severe colic. Methods: At hospital admission and 24 hours later, blood was collected from 30 healthy horses and 20 horses w...
Effect of insemination volume on uterine contractions and inflammatory response and on elimination of semen in the mare uterus-scintigraphic and ultrasonographic studies. The effect of artificial insemination (AI) volume on uterine contractility and inflammation and on elimination of semen in the reproductive tract of mares was examined for 4 h after AI using two methods, scintigraphy and ultrasonography. The same doses were used in both methods: 2 and 100 ml of skim milk-extended frozen semen. In the scintigraphic study, the number of reproductively normal mares was four per group and in the ultrasonographic study five per group. For scintigraphy, the semen was radiolabelled with technetium-99m. The static scintigrams were acquired immediately before and 30, 6...
Physiologic assessment of blood glucose homeostasis via combined intravenous glucose and insulin testing in horses. To characterize the physiologic response to i.v. bolus injection of glucose and insulin for development of a combined glucose-insulin test (CGIT) in horses. Methods: 6 healthy mares and 1 mare each with pituitary adenoma and urolithiasis. Methods: Horses were given a CGIT (glucose, 150 mg/kg; insulin, 0.1 U/kg); results were compared with a singular i.v. glucose tolerance test (GTT; 150 mg/kg) and a singular i.v. insulin sensitivity test (IST; 0.1 U/kg). Healthy horses were also given a CGIT after receiving xylazine and undergoing stress. Results: Physiologically, the CGIT resulted in a 2-phas...
Effect of homologous follicular fluid from medium-sized and large follicles on in vitro maturation of equine cumulus-oocyte complexes. The in vitro maturation (IVM) of equine oocytes is typically performed using various synthetic media; however, an optimal IVM system for equine oocytes has not been developed. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of two types of follicular fluid (FF) obtained from cyclic mares and two incubation intervals for the IVM of equine cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs). Follicular fluid was collected from medium-sized (20-29 mm diameter) and large (e30 mm; post-human chorionic gonadotrophin administration) follicles using transvaginal ultrasound-guided follicle aspiration. Compact (n ...
Effects of acepromazine on three-phase 99mTc-MDP bone imaging in 11 horses. Horses undergoing skeletal scintigraphy can have decreased radiopharmaceutical bone uptake in the limbs. This reduces the diagnostic value of the scan. The aim of the present study was to measure the changes in count density caused by vasodilatation and increased blood flow associated with intravenous injection of acepromazine during bone scintigraphy in normal horses. A three-phase bone scan was performed twice in 11 adult horses to study the effects of acepromazine on the count density of the resultant scintigrams. With acepromazine, there was a statistically significant mean difference of 1...
Determining effective centroid position in biomechanical testing: a technique for simplifying whole bone analysis. Whole bone in vitro biomechanical compressive testing can be complicated by three factors: sample asymmetry, heterogeneous material properties, and unknown effective centroid location. Methods: The technique presented here facilitates the calculation of effective centroid position, modulus of elasticity and equivalent uniform strain magnitude for a cross section of bone from a simple whole bone compressive test. Simplification of section response to load is achieved through a combination of linear beam and simple planer geometry theory. The technique requires three longitudinal strain gauges b...
Review of 15 cases of pemphigus foliaceus in horses and a survey of the literature. The records of 15 horses with pemphigus foliaceus diagnosed on the basis of their history, clinical signs, histopathology and the exclusion of differential diagnoses were evaluated with respect to the age of onset, the clinical signs and the diagnostic tests used. There was no apparent breed predisposition. The horses' mean age was nine years, with a range from three months to 25.5 years, three were foals up to six months old and eight were nine years old or older. The most frequent lesions were scaling in 11, crusting in 10 and alopecia in 10, and they appeared most commonly on the face, neck...
Transvenous electrical cardioversion of equine atrial fibrillation: technical considerations. Conventional treatment of equine atrial fibrillation (AF) involves administration of quinidine salts. Most uncomplicated cases respond to treatment, but pharmacologic cardioversion involves a range of adverse effects, and some horses are unable to tolerate medication. A study was undertaken to develop transvenous electrical cardioversion (TVEC) as an alternative treatment. Safety issues and catheter placement techniques with catheter-integrated cardioversion electrodes were investigated, and responses to shock application were evaluated. After the premortem catheterization of elective-euthanas...
Cardiac output measurement by partial carbon dioxide rebreathing, 2-dimensional echocardiography, and lithium-dilution method in anesthetized neonatal foals. The objective of this study was to assess 2 noninvasive methods of measuring cardiac output (CO) in neonatal foals by comparing results to that of the lithium-dilution method. Ten neonatal foals were anesthetized and CO was manipulated by varying the depth of anesthesia and infusion of dobutamine. Concurrent CO measurements were obtained by lithium dilution (reference method), partial carbon dioxide (CO2) rebreathing, volumetric echocardiography (cubic, Teichholz, Bullet, area-length, and single and biplane modified Simpson formulas), and transthoracic Doppler echocardiography. Thirty pairs of...
Regression and resurgence of the CL following PGF2alpha treatment 3 days after ovulation in mares. The present study was designed to characterize and compare the physiology and ultrasonographic morphology of the corpus luteum (CL) during regression and resurgence following a single dose of native prostaglandin F2alpha (PGF) given 3 days after ovulation, with a more conventional treatment given 10 days after ovulation. On the day of pre-treatment ovulation (Day 0), horse mares were randomly assigned to receive PGF (Lutalyse; 10 mg/mare, i.m.) on Day 3 (17 mares) or Day 10 (17 mares). Beginning on either Days 3 or 10, follicle and CL data and blood samples were collected daily until post-trea...
Quantitative assessment of hepatic function by means of 99mTc-mebrofenin in healthy horses. 99mTc-mebrofenin is used in humans and small animals to assess hepatic function. This study was undertaken to measure hepatic clearance of 99mTc-mebrofenin in healthy horses and to determine whether feed deprivation and increased serum total bilirubin (TBIL) concentration alter 99mTc-mebrofenin clearance. Plasma clearance of 99mTc-mebrofenin was determirned in 7 healthy horses at 0, 48, and 96 hours of feed withholding. Serum TBIL and nonesterified fatty acid (NEFA) concentrations were measured every 24 hours. 99mTc-mebrofenin (4.16 +/- 0.62 mCi, mean +/- SD) was injected into a jugular vein, ...
[Digital semiological anesthesia in horses: technique and elements of interpretation]. Digital semiological anesthesia in horses: Technique and elements of interpretation. Semiological anesthesia of the pes is used during examinations for lameness in horses. Recent research data on the distal digital, distal interphalangeal articular, and podotrochlear intrathecal nerve blocks indicate that they are less than specific when considered in isolation. They should be used in combination to localize pain in the pes. A positive response to anesthesia of the distal interphalangeal articulation could also indicate that the source of the pain was in the podotrochlear apparatus or the dors...
An early endometrial vascular indicator of completed orientation of the embryo and the role of dorsal endometrial encroachment in mares. The spherical equine embryonic vesicle is mobile throughout the uterine lumen for several days before becoming fixed in the caudal segment of a uterine horn on Day 16 (ovulation = Day 0). Orientation refers to the position of the embryo proper at the periphery of the vesicle relative to the position of the mesometrial attachment. In mares, the embryonic pole of the vesicle is antimesometrial after completion of orientation. Day of vesicle fixation, differential thickening of the endometrium near the mesometrial attachment, and orientation of the embryonic vesicle were studied in 30 ponies, usi...
Evaluation of risk factors for development of catheter-associated jugular thrombophlebitis in horses: 50 cases (1993-1998). To evaluate risk factors associated with development of catheter-associated jugular thrombophlebitis in hospitalized horses. Methods: Retrospective case-control study. Methods: 50 horses with thrombophlebitis and 100 control horses. Methods: Medical records from 1993 through 1998 were searched for horses with thrombophlebitis. Horses that were hospitalized for at least 5 days, had an i.v. catheter placed in a jugular vein (other than for solely anesthetic purposes), and had no evidence of thrombophlebitis during admission or hospitalization were chosen as controls. Signalment, history, clinico...
Multiple rib fracture in a neonatal foal using a nylon strand suture repair technique. To report rib fracture repair using the Securos Cranial Cruciate Ligament Repair System (SCCLRS; Securos Veterinary Orthopedics, Charlton, MA) in a neonatal foal. Methods: Case report. Methods: A 1-day-old Standardbred foal with fracture of left ribs 2-9. Methods: Four days after admission the foal was anesthetized and rib fractures were repaired using open reduction and the SCCLRS. Results: Rib fractures were successfully stabilized and the foal was discharged 7 days postoperatively without further complications. Conclusions: The SCCLRS provided a straightforward, effective method of rib frac...
Laser fenestration of the mesial septum for treatment of guttural pouch chondroids in a pony. To describe removal of guttural pouch chondroids through a laser fenestrated mesial septum in a pony with an obstructed pharyngeal ostium of the left guttural pouch. Methods: Case report. Methods: Pony. Methods: Transendoscopic laser neodymium:yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:YAG) fenestration of the mesial guttural pouch septum was made by contact method (bare fiber, 15-25 W, exposure time 4 seconds). Dissected tissue was removed by transendoscopic monopolar electrosurgery (loop electrode, cutting blade) and multiple chondroids of varying size were removed from the left guttural pouch through the ...
Real-time reverse transcription PCR for detection and quantitative analysis of equine influenza virus. Equine influenza is a cause of epizootic respiratory disease of the equine. The detection of equine influenza virus using real-time Light Cycler reverse transcription (RT)-PCR technology was evaluated over two influenza seasons with the analysis of 171 samples submitted for viral respiratory disease. Increased sensitivity was found in overall viral detection with this system compared to Directigen Flu A and virus isolation, which were 40% and 23%, respectively, that of the RT-PCR. The assay was also evaluated as a viable replacement for the more traditional methods of quantifying equine influe...
Regional and zonal variations in the sulfation patterns of chondroitin sulfate in normal equine corneal stroma. To determine regional and zonal variation in sulfation patterns of chondroitin sulfate in normal equine corneal stroma. Methods: 22 normal eyes from 11 horses. Methods: Corneas were collected within 24 hours of death from equine necropsy specimens. After papain-chondroitinase digestion of corneal tissue, disaccharides deltaDi4S and deltaDi6S were quantified by use of capillary zone electrophoresis in the superficial, middle, and deep zones of central and peripheral regions of the cornea. Results: For the 2 regions combined, deltaDi6S/deltaDi4S values were significantly lower in the deep and mi...
Septic pleuritis and abdominal abscess formation caused by Rhodococcus equi in a foal. A 3-month-old female Arabian horse was evaluated because of fever, respiratory distress, lethargy, and decreased appetite of 5 days' duration. Pleural effusion was diagnosed on the basis of ultrasonographic and radiographic examinations. Cytologic examination of pleural fluid collected via thoracocentesis revealed septic inflammation; bacteriologic culture of a sample of that fluid yielded Rhodococcus equi. A large intra-abdominal mass adjacent to the body wall was identified ultrasonographically. A specimen of the mass was collected via aspiration; the specimen was identified cytologically as...
Estimation of heritability for Tying-up syndrome in the Thoroughbred racehorse by Gibbs sampling. Tying-up is a condition that primarily affects the muscles of horses. In this study, the heritability of the Tying-up syndrome in the Thoroughbred racehorse was estimated by Bayesian analysis with Gibbs sampling based on the threshold model for binary traits. The data used were the clinical data in racehorses diagnosed by veterinarians of the Racehorse Clinics of Japan Racing Association from 2000 to 2003. The health status of the Tying-up was treated as a binary trait. In the genetic analysis, the effect of changing the amount of the pedigree or inbreeding information on the estimation of her...
Plasma concentrations of 15-ketodihydro-PGF(2alpha), cortisol and progesterone during manual twin reduction in thoroughbred mares. The aim of the present study was to highlight the effect of two different techniques of one embryo crushing on some hormonal changes. Ten twinning mares were submitted to the mobile or fixed manual crushing of one blastocyst within day 19 after the last mating. Blood sample was collected from 20 min before to 90 min, 24 and 72 h after the procedure was performed to analyse 15-ketodihydro-PGF(2alpha), cortisol and progesterone plasma concentrations. Singleton pregnancy diagnosis was checked 72 h after crushing and at term of pregnancy. Because the unwanted crushing of both embryos occurred in o...
Inheritance of recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis in thoroughbreds. To develop a diagnostic test for recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis (RER) in Thoroughbreds that relied on in vitro contracture of muscle biopsy specimens and determine whether the inheritance pattern of RER diagnosed on the basis of this contracture test was consistent with an autosomal dominant trait. Methods: Clinical trial. Methods: 8 adult horses with RER and 16 control adult horses for development of the contracture test; 23 foals for inheritance of RER. Methods: External intercostal muscle biopsy specimens from the 24 adult horses were tested for contracture in response to halothane and...
Evaluation of a multiplex polymerase chain reaction assay for simultaneous detection of Rhodococcus equi and the vapA gene. To evaluate sensitivity and specificity of a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay for simultaneous detection of Rhodococcus equi and differentiation of strains that contain the virulence-associated gene (vapA) from strains that do not. Methods: 187 isolates of R equi from equine and nonequine tissue and environmental specimens and 27 isolates of bacterial species genetically or morphologically similar to R equi. Methods: The multiplex PCR assay included 3 gene targets: a universal 311-bp bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA amplicon (positive internal control), a 959-bp R equi-specific targe...
Evaluation of the precision of intradermal injection of control substances for intradermal testing in clinically normal horses. To evaluate the precision of intradermal testing (IDT) in horses. Methods: 12 healthy adult horses. Methods: IDT was performed on the neck of each horse by use of 2 positive control substances (histamine and phytohemagglutinin [PHA]) and a negative control substance. An equal volume (0.1 mL) for each injection was prepared to yield a total of 20 syringes ([4 concentrations of each positive control substance plus 1 negative control substance] times 2 positive control substances times 2 duplicative tests) for each side of the neck. Both sides of the neck were used for IDT; therefore, 40 syringes...
