Disease diagnosis in horses involves the identification and characterization of illnesses through various diagnostic methods and tools. This process is essential for effective veterinary care and management of equine health. Techniques used in diagnosing diseases in horses include clinical examinations, laboratory tests, imaging modalities such as ultrasonography and radiography, and molecular diagnostics. Blood tests are frequently utilized to assess parameters such as complete blood count and biochemical profiles, which can indicate underlying health issues. Additionally, advancements in genetic testing and biomarker identification have enhanced the ability to detect specific diseases early. This page aggregates peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore diagnostic methodologies, their applications, and their impact on equine health management.
Trolldenier H, Klarmann D, Krabisch P, Rohde J, Steiner A, Verspohl J.368 streptococcal strains from udder secretions of cattle (Sc. agalactiae, Sc. dysgalactiae, Sc. uberis) and 191 streptococcal isolates from horse specimens (Sc. equi ssp. zooepidemicus, Sc. equi ssp. equi) originating from different agricultural regions in Germany (Lower Saxony, in particular the region of Weser-Ems, Bavaria, Altmark) were investigated for their sensitivity to 4 beta-lactam antibiotics (benzylpenicillin, ampicillin, oxacillin, cefotaxime). Two different test methods were applied: the agar diffusion test for determination of the diameter of the zone of inhibition and the E-tes...
Hultén C, Sandgren B, Skiöldebrand E, Klingeborn B, Marhaug G, Forsberg M.The acute phase protein serum amyloid A (SAA) has proven potentially useful as an inflammatory marker in the horse, but the knowledge of SAA responses in viral diseases is limited. The aim of this study was to evaluate SAA as a marker for acute equine influenza A2 (H3N8) virus infection. This is a highly contagious, serious condition that inflicts suffering on affected horses and predisposes them to secondary bacterial infections and impaired performance. Seventy horses, suffering from equine influenza, as verified by clinical signs and seroconversion, were sampled in the acute (the first 48 h...
Uhlhorn H, Eksell P, Sandgren B, Carlsten J.To assess the significance of radiographic signs of sclerosis of the third carpal bone (C3) in young Standardbred trotters in relation to performance, lameness and bone turnover both carpi in 14 Standardbred trotters were radiographically and scintigraphically examined 6 times, from the beginning of speed training until the beginning of racing, between the mean ages of 20 and 42 months. At the end of the study 8 horses had raced in official qualifying races and 14 limbs in 11 horses had been diagnosed with carpal lameness. All horses but 2 developed sclerosis and all but one had increased bone...
Birch-Machin I, Ryder S, Taylor L, Iniguez P, Marault M, Ceglie L, Zientara S, Cruciere C, Cancellotti F, Koptopoulos G, Mumford J, Binns M....Three filamentous phage random peptide display libraries were used in biopanning experiments with purified IgG from the serum of a gnotobiotic foal infected with equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) to enrich for epitopes binding to anti-EHV-1 antibodies. The sequences of the amino acids displayed were aligned with protein sequences of EHV-1, thereby identifying a number of potential antibody binding regions. Presumptive epitopes were identified within the proteins encoded by genes 7 (DNA helicase/primase complex protein), 11 (tegument protein), 16 (glycoprotein C), 41 (integral membrane protein), 70 ...
Christley RM, Rose RJ, Hodgson DR, Reid SW, Evans S, Bailey C, Hodgson JL.This study evaluated a questionnaire investigating the attitudes and behaviours of veterinarians regarding the cause, diagnosis and treatment of lower respiratory-tract disease in racehorses. The questionnaire was sent to all non-student members (648) of the Australian Equine Veterinary Association: two mailings and a single telephone contact (each separated by four weeks). Subsequent phases were only administered to those who had not responded to earlier phases. In total, 467 (72.1%) of the 648 mailed questionnaires were returned. Of these, 354 were usable. The remaining 113 respondents gave ...
Christley RM, Rose RJ, Hodgson DR, Reid SW, Evans S, Bailey C, Hodgson JL.A questionnaire was administered to members of the Australian Equine Veterinary Association to investigate their attitudes and behaviours regarding the cause, diagnosis and treatment of lower-respiratory-tract disease in racehorses. The most-important perceived risk factors related to the level of exposure and resistance to infectious agents, whereas factors associated with racing and climatic factors were lower ranked. By far the most-commonly implicated primary cause of disease was respiratory viruses. However, specific diagnostic tests (such as viral serology or virus isolation) were rarely...
Cornelisse CJ, Schott HC, Olivier NB, Mullaney TP, Koller A, Wilson DV, Derksen FJ.An 18-year-old Thoroughbred gelding was evaluated because of sudden onset of ventricular tachycardia and signs of colic. Three years earlier, a diastolic decrescendo murmur, consistent with aortic regurgitation, had been detected, but the horse continued to perform well and compete successfully. Cardiac ultrasonographic examination revealed a defect in the interventricular septum below the aortic root, and serum concentrations of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) were higher than those measured in clinically normal horses. Repeated development of tachyarrhythmia during hospitalization prompted a decis...
Martens RJ, Takai S, Cohen ND, Chaffin MK, Liu H, Sakurai K, Sugimoto H, Lingsweiler SW.To determine whether isolation and virulence of Rhodococcus equi from soil and infected foals are associated with clinical disease. Methods: Cross-sectional and case-control study. Methods: R equi isolates from 50 foals with pneumonia and soil samples from 33 farms with and 33 farms without a history of R equi infection (affected and control, respectively). Methods: R equi was selectively isolated from soil samples. Soil and clinical isolates were evaluated for virulence-associated protein antigen plasmids (VapA-P) and resistance to the beta-lactam antibiotics penicillin G and cephalothin. Mic...
Dolente BA, Seco OM, Lewis ML.A 14-year-old horse was admitted to the veterinary hospital for treatment of tachycardia and lethargy. Initial diagnoses were ventricular tachycardia and renal dysfunction. During hospitalization other findings included fever, renal failure, hepatic failure, hypotension, and intermittent ventricular arrhythmias. Bacteriologic culture of 2 blood samples collected during febrile crises 7 days apart yielded Streptococcus mitis. These culture results along with other clinical and physical examination findings fulfill the criteria for a diagnosis of streptococcal toxic shock syndrome, previously de...
Sweeney CR, Russell GE.To examine total protein concentration and cell counts of sequentially collected samples of CSF to determine whether blood contamination decreases in subsequent samples and whether formulas used to correct nucleated cell count and total protein concentration are accurate. Methods: Case series. Methods: 22 horses. Methods: For each horse, 3 or 4 sequential 2-ml samples of CSF were collected from the subarachnoid space in the lumbosacral region into separate syringes, and blood was obtained from the jugular vein. Total protein concentration, nucleated cell count, and RBC counts were determined i...
Vanderwall DK, Squires EL, Brinsko SP, McCue PM.To determine the incidence, ultrasonographic characteristics, and risk factors associated with embryonic development characterized by formation of an embryonic vesicle without an embryo in mares. Methods: Prevalence survey. Methods: 159 pregnant mares. Methods: From 1994 to 1998, mares between 11 and 40 days after ovulation with normal and abnormal embryonic development were examined ultrasonographically, and characteristics of each conceptus were recorded. Results: The incidence of abnormal embryonic development in mares characterized by formation of an embryonic vesicle without an embryo was...
Bröjer JT, Parsons DA, Linder KE, Peregrine AS, Dobson H.An 8-year-old, Arabian mare presented with acute progressive ataxia and a firm swelling over the right mandible. Radiographs revealed multiple radiolucent areas on the mandibles. The mare's neurological signs progressed, she was consequently euthanized. Postmortem examination revealed mandibular granulomatous reactions and meningoencephalitis due to the nematode Halicephalobus gingivalis.
Weese JS, Staempfli HR, Prescott JF.Although Clostridium difficile is recognized as a cause of enterocolitis in horses and humans, there has been little work published regarding the lability of C. difficile and its toxins in feces. A significant decrease in recovery of C. difficile from inoculated equine fecal samples occurred during storage. Recovery after storage in air at 4 degrees C decreased from 76% (37/49) after 24 hours to 67% (33/49) at 48 hours and 29% (14/ 49) after 72 hours. In contrast to aerobic storage, 25 of 26 samples stored anaerobically at 4 degrees C yielded growth of C. difficile for 30 days, whereas the org...
Kurotaki T, Narayama K, Oyamada T, Yoshikawa H, Yoshikawa T.An immunohistochemical study was carried out on the kinetics of Langerhans cells (LCs) at various pathological stages of "Kasen". Skin lesions of "Kasen" that were collected by biopsy from May to October were classified histopathologically into three stages: initial (Group I, 31 cases), developing (Group II, 50 cases) and regressing (Group III, 13 cases). LCs showed a positive reaction with anti-equine thymocytes (EqT6) monoclonal antibody (MoAb) and anti-major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II MoAb by immunohistochemical staining. The anti-EqT6 MoAb was intensely positive along the cy...
Fukunaga Y, Wada R, Sugita S, Fujita Y, Nambo Y, Imagawa H, Kanemaru T, Kamada M, Komatsu N, Akashi H.Equine arteritis virus (EAV) was readily isolated in RK-13 cell monolayers by plaque assay from seminal plasma of experimental carrier stallions when they contained high titers of virus regardless of the presence of non-viral cytotoxicity in the seminal plasma. The cytotoxicity interfered with virus isolation from seminal plasma which contained virus at titers less than 10 PFU/ml. However, it was possible to detect the virus in seminal plasma pretreated with PEG (#6000). EAV was consistently identified by RT-PCR from crude seminal plasma which contained virus at titers of more than 10(2.7) PFU...
Carvalho R, Passos LM, Martins AS.In this study, a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) procedure was developed for differentiation of strains and field isolates of equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) and type 4 (EHV-4). Specific oli-gonucleotide primers were combined to amplify the thymidine kinase (TK) gene region of EHV-1 and EHV-4, which would yield fragments of different lengths for each virus in the same amplification reaction. The specificity of the largest PCR amplicon for EHV-4 was confirmed by restriction digestion with HindIII. The multiplex PCR proved to be a fast and sensitive method for typing EHV-1 and EHV-4 ...
Del Piero F.Equine viral arteritis (EVA) can cause prominent economic losses for the equine industry. The purpose of this review is to provide the pathologist some familiarity with the clinical history, lesions, pathogenesis, and diagnosis of EVA. EVA is caused by an arterivirus (equine arteritis virus, EAV), and the vascular system is the principal but not unique viral target. EVA has variable presentations, including interstitial pneumonia, panvasculitis with edema, thrombosis and hemorrhage, lymphoid necrosis, renal tubular necrosis, abortion, and inflammation of male accessory genital glands. EAV anti...
Del Piero F.Equine viral arteritis (EVA) can cause prominent economic losses for the equine industry. The purpose of this review is to provide the pathologist some familiarity with the clinical history, lesions, pathogenesis, and diagnosis of EVA. EVA is caused by an arterivirus (equine arteritis virus, EAV), and the vascular system is the principal but not unique viral target. EVA has variable presentations, including interstitial pneumonia, panvasculitis with edema, thrombosis and hemorrhage, lymphoid necrosis, renal tubular necrosis, abortion, and inflammation of male accessory genital glands. EAV anti...
Linton RA, Young LE, Marlin DJ, Blissitt KJ, Brearley JC, Jonas MM, O'Brien TK, Linton NW, Band DM, Hollingworth C, Jones RS.To assess the suitability of lithium dilution as a method for measuring cardiac output in anesthetized horses, compared with thermodilution and transesophageal Doppler echocardiography. Methods: 6 horses (3 Thoroughbreds, 3 crossbreeds). Methods: Cardiac output was measured in 6 anesthetized horses as lithium dilution cardiac output (LiDCO), thermodilution cardiac output (TDCO), and transesophageal Doppler echocardiographic cardiac output (DopplerCO). For the LiDCO measurements, lithium chloride was administered i.v., and cardiac output was derived from the arterial lithium dilution curve. Sod...
Nadeau JA, Andrews FM, Mathew AG, Argenzio RA, Blackford JT, Sohtell M, Saxton AM.To measure pH, volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentrations, and lactate concentrations in stomach contents and determine number and severity of gastric lesions in horses fed bromegrass hay and alfalfa hay-grain diets. Methods: Six 7-year-old horses. Methods: A gastric cannula was inserted in each horse. Horses were fed each diet, using a randomized crossover design. Stomach contents were collected immediately after feeding and 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, and 24 hours after feeding on day 14. The pH and VFA and lactate concentrations were measured in gastric juice Number and severity of gastri...
Del Piero F.Equine viral arteritis (EVA) can cause prominent economic losses for the equine industry. The purpose of this review is to provide the pathologist some familiarity with the clinical history, lesions, pathogenesis, and diagnosis of EVA. EVA is caused by an arterivirus (equine arteritis virus, EAV), and the vascular system is the principal but not unique viral target. EVA has variable presentations, including interstitial pneumonia, panvasculitis with edema, thrombosis and hemorrhage, lymphoid necrosis, renal tubular necrosis, abortion, and inflammation of male accessory genital glands. EAV anti...
Bailey SR, Andrews MJ, Elliott J, Cunningham FM.Altered platelet responsiveness has been demonstrated in human atopic dermatitis. This study has compared the in vitro function of platelets from normal ponies and those with the allergic skin disease, sweet itch. Methods: Ponies with a clinical history of sweet itch and normal ponies were used as blood donors. Methods: PAF and ADP-induced platelet aggregation was measured and TxB2 production quantitated at the time of maximal aggregation; 12-HETE was additionally measured in some samples. Agonist-induced release of 3[H]5-HT was also studied. Results: Although both PAF and ADP caused equine pl...
John HA, Laffling AJ, Marrs J, Baird A, Jat PS, Holdstock NB, Rossdale PD.To enable direct testing of a range of potential toxins or pathogens that might be involved in grass sickness, equine thoracic sympathetic chain ganglion cell lines were established from primary cell cultures by retroviral-mediated transduction of the temperature-sensitive mutant of the establishment oncogene encoding SV40 large T antigen. Morphological and behavioral features, temperature dependence, and immunocytochemical characteristics of the cell lines were investigated. The majority of cells were noradrenergic neurons in which dopamine-beta-hydroxylase, the enzyme that catalyzes norepine...
McGorum BC, Fry SC, Wallace G, Coenen K, Robb J, Williamson G, Aruoma OI.To investigate the etiology of equine dysautonomia (ED), a degenerative polyneuropathy affecting grazing horses, the biochemical composition and antioxidant/prooxidant activities of aqueous extracts of plants collected from ED pastures were determined. Plants collected immediately after an outbreak of ED had reduced antioxidant and weak prooxidant activities when compared with control plants (plants collected from ED pastures out of ED season and control plants from ED pastures that were grown under favorable conditions). ED plants also had significantly increased concentrations of fructose an...
Kaaden OR, Truyen U.There is a continuous change in viral epidemics with respect to clinical symptoms, their duration or disappearance and the emergence of new diseases. This can be observed both in human and animal diseases. This evolution of virus diseases is mainly related to three factors: etiological agent, host and environment. As far as genetic alterations of the virus are concerned, two major mechanisms are involved: 1) mutations such as recombination and reassortment; 2) selection for resistance or susceptibility. The epidemiology of newly emerged virus diseases in man and animals, such as AIDS and hemor...
Leiva M, Peña T, Armengou L, Cesarini C, Monreal L.Septicemia in humans is described as a leading cause of uveitis, which eventually can induce blindness. Objective: Uveal inflammatory findings could be related to sepsis severity in newborn foals and might be used as an indirect indicator for survival. Methods: Seventy-four septic foals, 54 nonseptic foals, and 42 healthy foals. Methods: Prospective observational clinical study. A detailed blinded, ophthalmic examination was performed by boarded ophthalmologists on all admitted newborn foals. Foals were grouped as septic (when blood culture resulted positive or the sepsis score was > or =14...
Sharkey LC, DeWitt S, Stockman C.A 23-year-old Thoroughbred gelding was referred for the evaluation of acute onset of ataxia and depression, and a 2-day history of fever. On physical examination, the gelding was profoundly depressed and 10-12% dehydrated. The horse appeared very unstable, with a wide-based stance in the hind limbs, severe symmetric ataxia in all 4 limbs, and proprioceptive deficits in both hind limbs. Nasogastric intubation produced 4 L of brown, fetid reflux, and rectal examination revealed mild small intestinal and cecal distention. Hematologic abnormalities included neutropenia with toxic change, compatibl...
Calisher CH, Mahmud MI, el-Kafrawi AO, Emerson JK, Muth DJ.Paired sera from 28 nonvaccinated horses with serologically confirmed western equine encephalitis (WEE) virus infections were evaluated for immunoglobulin (Ig)M and IgG directed against WEE virus, by use of enzyme immunoassay. Twenty-one of the horses developed greater than or equal to 4-fold increases or decreases in serum IgM titers in paired serum samples, confirming the diagnosis of WEE in these horses. Of the remaining 7 horses, 1 had stable IgM titers, 1 had a 2-fold increase in IgM titer between paired sera, 2 had 2-fold decreases in IgM titer, and for 3 horses adequate volumes were not...
Dart AJ, Snyder JR, Pascoe JR, Farver TB, Galuppo LD.The signalment, clinical and laboratory findings of surgical conditions, treatment, and outcome of 102 cases of descending colon disease in horses were reviewed. Abnormal conditions were categorized as enteroliths, impactions, strangulating lipomas, fecaliths, foreign body obstruction, volvulus, nephrosplenic entrapment, and other conditions. Eleven breed categories of horses were seen during this period. Arabians, ponies, and American miniature horses were more predisposed to descending colon disease than other breeds (P less than 0.05). Female horses and animals greater than 15 years old wer...
Weiss DJ, Evanson OA, McClenahan D, Fagliari JJ, Dunnwiddie CT, Wells RE.To determining whether inhibition of platelet aggregation prevents development of carbohydrate overload-induced alimentary laminitis. Methods: 22 healthy adult ponies. Methods: Acute laminitis was induced by oral administration of corn starch/wood flour to 16 ponies, 8 of which were treated with a synthetic analogue of the platelet fibrinogen receptor antagonist peptide (RPR) RGDS (arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-serine) 110885; 6 ponies served as negative controls. Blood was collected before and at 4, 8, 12, 24, 28, and 32 hours after administration of carbohydrate overload, and PCV, total pla...
Lumsden JM, Derksen FJ, Stick JA, Robinson NE.Flow-volume loops generated from 6 Standardbreds at rest and during treadmill exercise were evaluated for their use in detecting upper airway obstruction. Tidal breathing flow-volume loops (TBFVL) were obtained from horses at rest and exercising at speeds corresponding to 75% of maximal heart rate and at maximal heart rate. The TBFVL were evaluated, using a pulmonary function computer; calculated indices describing airflow rate and expiratory-to-inspiratory airflow ratio for individual loops were determined. In addition to TBFVL indices, standard variables of upper airway function also were me...
Cook RF, Cook SJ, Even DL, Schaffer C, Issel CJ.Horse IL-7 (HIL-7) cDNA was isolated from adult lymph node tissue by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using oligonucleotide primers based on horse genomic sequences (The Broad Institute). In addition, to the full-length (FL) 531bp reading frame encoding 176 amino acids, shorter open-reading frames of 477, 396 and 264bp were also amplified. Nucleotide sequence analysis of these RT-PCR products demonstrated they were homologous except the shorter species were missing internal sequences consistent with multiple RNA splicing events. Consequently, the shorter open-reading fr...
Shakibamehr N, Mosavari N, Harzandi N, Mojgani N.Burkholderia mallei is the etiologic agent of glanders. It is difficult to diagnose this zoonotic disease in its early stages. Some methods such as the complement fixation test (CFT) cause some problems for veterinary authorities and financial losses to animal owners due to false-positive results. The mallein test requires appropriate laboratory equipment and skilled personnel. To quickly and accurately diagnose the disease, especially in areas where animals cannot be kept, new methods (such as the Western blot test [WBT]) should be used to identify the disease. This study designed and optimiz...
Putnam JR, Holmes LM, Green MJ, Freeman SL.Lameness is a common problem in the horse. Despite this, information on the incidence of lameness in horses in the UK is restricted to studies of lameness in performance horses, racehorses or referral hospital populations. Objective: To determine the overall incidence and common causes of lameness in a working horse population and incidence, duration and outcome of conditions observed. Methods: Prospective questionnaire study. Methods: Questionnaires were used to record lameness episodes in 294 horses in an equine military establishment. Information recorded included age, years of service, typ...
Pfahl K, Chung C, Singleton MD, Shuck KM, Go YY, Zhang J, Campos J, Adams E, Adams DS, Timoney PJ, Balasuriya UB.The purpose of this study was to further evaluate and validate two commercially available equine arteritis virus (EAV) competitive ELISAs (original and enhanced cELISAs) using archived equine sera from experimentally inoculated animals and field sera submitted for laboratory diagnosis. First, the original and subsequently enhanced cELISAs were compared with the virus neutralisation test (VNT) using a panel of archived serum samples from experimentally inoculated animals. Then, the enhanced cELISA was compared with the VNT using a large panel of archived serum samples. The total number of equin...
Rickard LG, Black SS, Rashmir-Raven A, Hurst G, Dubey JP.Sarcocystis neurona is the most important cause of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) in horse in the Americas. The only known definitive host for this parasite in the United States is the opossum (Didelphis virginiana); however, despite the importance of the disease, the epidemiology of the parasite in the definitive host is poorly understood. To begin addressing these data gaps, potential risk factors were evaluated for their association with the presence of sporocysts of S. neurona in opossums live-trapped in March 1999 and November 1999 to May 2000. Sporocysts of S. neurona were foun...
Rosenstein DS, Bowker RM, Bartlett PC.To describe the vascular anatomy of the palmar digital artery and its major branches in the equine foot and to quantify the diameter of these vessels by use of digital angiograms. Sample Population-6 thoracic limbs obtained from 6 horses. Methods: Distal portions of each limb were perfused with aerated Krebs-Henseleit solution. Digital angiograms were acquired in standing and lateral recumbent positions, following an intra-arterial injection of iopamidol. Select vessels were measured on radiographic views, and values were corrected for magnification. Results: The palmar digital artery tapered ...
Kumar R, Yadav SC, Kumar S, Dilbaghi N.A rapid flow-through immunoassay using protein A labeled gold nanoparticles (GNPs) for the qualitative detection of trypanosomosis in equine serum samples was developed. The flow-through device consisted of antigen-coated nitrocellulose membrane fixed on absorbent pads. The GNPs based detection probe was used as the colored marker. The assay can be employed for the detection of specific antibodies at 14 days post-infection in the infected pooled serum samples of equines. The assay can be conducted in < 5 min. The results of the flow-through assay were comparable with the methods like E...
Bugno M, Słota E.A 5-year-old infertile Hutsul mare was subjected to cytogenetic analysis. Fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) using the equine Xp and Xq chromosome painting probes was carried out on chromosome preparations obtained after blood lymphocyte culture. These probes were generated by chromosome microdissection and a large number of spreads was analysed (525). The karyotype formula of the analysed mare was 64,XX/65,XX+Xp with the ratio of the two lines being 99.4 and 0.6, respectively. The goal of the study was to apply chromosome microdissection and the FISH technique for cytogenetic diagnosti...
Blackall PJ, Bisgaard M, McKenzie RA.The objective of this work was to perform a comprehensive phenotypic characterisation of 16 isolates of bacteria previously identified as Actinobacillus equuli. Methods: The 16 isolates that had been obtained from Australian animals--15 from horses and one from a rabbit--were compared with reference strains of A equuli, A capsulatus, Pasteurella caballi and Bisgaard Taxa 9 and 11. Results: The characterisation study demonstrated that only nine of the isolates were A equuli. The other isolates were identified as A capsulatus (the isolate from rabbit), P caballi (one isolate), Bisgaard Taxon 11 ...
Stewart JH, Young IH, Rose RJ, Costas L, Barko AM.The distributions of ventilation-perfusion ratios, and the effects of 100% oxygen administration on the distributions, were studied in 3 foals from 4h to 9 days of age, using the multiple inert gas elimination technique. The distributions were calculated from the pulmonary clearance of 6 inert gases following infusion into a peripheral vein of a solution containing the inert gases. The results from a total of 8 studies showed several consistent features. The major findings were (i) the absence of low ventilation-perfusion ratios, i.e. regions where blood flow was greatly in excess of ventilati...
Shilton CA, Kahler A, Roach JM, Raudsepp T, de Mestre AM.Embryonic and foetal loss remain one of the greatest challenges in equine reproductive health with 5-10% of established day 15 pregnancies and a further 5-10% of day 70 pregnancies failing to produce a viable foal. The underlying reason for these losses is variable but ultimately most cases will be attributed to pathologies of the environment of the developing embryo and later foetus, or a defect intrinsic to the embryo itself that leads to lethality at any stage of gestation right up to birth. Historically, much research has focused on the maternal endometrium, endocrine and immune responses ...
Banfield J, Lisak R, Omar A, Domingos W, Fiaschitello A, Morales-Gomez A, Divers TJ, Mohammed HO.We carried out an investigation to identify the factors that predispose to the risk of equine motor neuron disease (EMND) and evaluated the long-term impact of an intervention. Data on several biomarkers, including antioxidants (α-tocopherols, β-carotenes, glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx)), and superoxide dismutase (SOD1), neurofilaments, and other putative risk factors hypothesized to associate with the likelihood of EMND were collected. The data were analyzed for their significance of association with the condition. The EMND outbreak started in 1991 and continued until 1998. A total of 69 EM...
Smith FL, Magdesian KG, Michel AO, Vaughan B, Reilly CM.A new syndrome of hematuria in horses has been documented. Objective: Hemorrhagic cystitis is a novel cause of stranguria and hematuria in horses. This syndrome may be difficult to differentiate from bladder neoplasia because they share several clinical features. Methods: Eleven horses with idiopathic hemorrhagic cystitis and 7 horses with bladder neoplasia. Methods: Retrospective cohort study. Results: Hemorrhagic cystitis was detected on cystoscopy of affected horses, with hemorrhagic and thickened apical bladder mucosa. Clinical signs and endoscopic appearance of the bladder resolved within...
Riis KH, Harrison AP, Riis-Olesen K.Assessment of muscle function after an injury or during recovery is of great importance in the veterinary field. Accelerometry, bioimpedance analysis and mechanomyography/acoustic myography have been used to assess human muscular problems, but have not been applied to the veterinary clinic. We report the clinical use of these techniques in a 12-year-old Danish Warmblood horse presenting with recurring and shifting lameness. Acoustic myography, assessing both the amplitude and frequency of active muscles, was employed to locate the specific area of muscle injury, the right hip, which exhibited ...
Tăbăran AF, Nagy AL, Cătoi C, Morar I, Tăbăran A, Mihaiu M, Bolfa P.In veterinary medicine congenital abnormalities of the diaphragm and pericardium are rare, idiopathic malformations, being reported mainly in dogs. This report documents an unusual case of developmental defects in a foal consisting of diaphragmatic hernia concurrent with pericardial aplasia. Methods: Following a normal delivery, a full term, female Friesian stillborn foal with the placenta was presented for necropsy. External morphological examination indicated a normally developed foal. At necropsy, a large oval defect (approximately 20 × 15 cm in size) was observed in the left-dorsal si...
Moore JN, Steiss J, Nicholson WE, Orth DN.In the horse, a syndrome of hirsutism, hyperglycemia, glucosuria, polydipsia, polyuria, polyphagia, and progressive debilitation has been recognized. Most often the syndrome has been associated with adenomas of the pars intermedia of the pituitary and bilateral adrenal hyperplasia or nodular hyperplasia involving primarily the zona fasciculata. Previously, the syndrome has been ascribed to compression of the hypothalamus by an expanding but functionally inactive pituitary neoplasm. In the present case, with RIA determination of plasma ACTH concentrations, the syndrome was ascribed to pituitary...
Vaala WE.Other therapeutic agents used in foals for specific diseases are discussed elsewhere. The marked effect of species, age, and degree of maturity on drug metabolism in the neonate reinforces the danger of interspecies extrapolation of pharmacology, the need for information specific for the foal, and the necessity for monitoring drug levels in the individual. Suggested antimicrobial doses are listed in Tables 3, 4, and 6. Recommended doses of anticonvulsants and sedatives are listed in Table 8 and in the article "Intensive Care of the Neonatal Foal." The following are recommendations for drug the...
Giannetto C, Di Pietro S, Pennisi M, Acri G, Piccione G, Giudice E.In clinical practice, an important aspect of animal health status evaluation is the body temperature recording obtained using different methods. Within them, the non-contact and non-invasive infrared thermometer can provide an accurate estimation of body temperature improving the quality of care and medical decision. To evaluate the use of the monitoring of auricular temperature to improve the quality of care and medical decision. To evaluate the use of the monitoring of auricular temperature as indices of body temperature, as well as rectal temperature in eleven clinically healthy mixed bred ...
Raisbeck MF, Dahl ER, Sanchez DA, Belden EL, O'Toole D.A review of Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory records for 1947-1987 revealed no substantiated cases of naturally occurring selenosis. However, older reports attributed thousands of animal deaths to selenium each year in this area. Beginning in August 1988, cases of suspected selenosis and selenium deficiency were solicited from veterinarians and producers by announcements in various statewide livestock publications. As of August 1991, 4 cases (all horses) of naturally occurring selenosis have been confirmed. Clinical signs were most often referable to epithelial damage, e.g., hoof lesions an...
Morgan D.Although there is no recognized transmission of human arboviral infections in the UK, concerns about the possible spread of West Nile virus (WNV) have precipitated coordinated activities around both surveillance and response. The Department of Health has chaired a UK WNV task force since the end of 2000. This is a multidisciplinary group of senior representatives from Agencies and Government Departments involved in human and animal health, entomology and academic departments. Activities include surveillance for WNV infections in humans, and in dead birds, mosquitoes and horses. All have been n...
Valentine BA, Credille KM, Lavoie JP, Fatone S, Guard C, Cummings JF, Cooper BJ.A severe myopathy leading to death or euthanasia was identified in 4 Belgian and 4 Percheron draught horses age 2-21 years. Clinical signs ranged from overt weakness and muscle atrophy in 2 horses age 2 and 3 years, to recumbency with inability to rise in 6 horses age 4-21 years. In 5 horses there was mild to severe increases in muscle enzyme levels. Clinical diagnoses included equine motor neuron disease (2 horses), post anaesthetic myopathy (2 horses), exertional myopathy (2 horses), myopathy due to unknown (one horse), and equine protozoal myelitis (one horse). Characteristic histopathology...
Hermans H, Ensink JM.Distichiasis is very uncommon in horses and treatment options and outcome remain unknown. Objective: To describe treatment and long-term follow-up of distichiasis in the horse. Methods: Retrospective clinical study. Methods: Case records of horses admitted for diagnosis and treatment of uni- or bilateral distichiasis between 2003 and 2012 were reviewed. Long-term (>6 months after last treatment) follow-up was by telephone conversation with the owner or referring veterinarian. Data were analysed using a Chi-squared test. Results: Eighteen cases were identified, of which 17 were Friesians. All h...
Wang L, Unger L, Sharif H, Eriksson S, Gerber V, Rönnberg H.Thymidine kinase 1 (TK1) plays a key role in the synthesis of deoxythymidine triphosphate (dTTP) and is thus important for DNA replication and cell proliferation. The expression of TK1 is highest during S-phase, and it is rapidly degraded after mitosis. In cancer cells, TK1 is upregulated, resulting in leakage of excess TK1 into the blood. Consequently, serum TK1 has been used as a diagnostic and prognostic cancer biomarker, mainly in human medicine. The aims of this work were to characterize equine TK1 and to evaluate its suitability as a serum biomarker for equine lymphoma. Results: Equine T...
Parker JE, Rakestraw PC.A 5-year-old Quarter Horse stallion was admitted for cryptorchidectomy. Abnormalities were not found on physical examination, except for an undescended left testis. Cryptorchidectomy was performed, using an inguinal approach. The tail of the epididymis was in the inguinal canal, and the testis was adjacent to the internal inguinal ring. The testis was dark reddish purple to black, resulting from torsion at the level of the body of the epididymis. On histologic examination, the left testis was necrotic, except for the tunica albuginea and tunica vaginalis visceralis covering the testis. Intra-a...
