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.
Woollam DH.The history of teratology is reviewed. Methods available for causing malformations in mammals by subtle changes in the environment during pregnancy are discussed. A table is provided in which the commoner teratogens are listed. Methods are described by means of which the activity of some common teratogens may be opposed. The occurrence at Battle Creek, Michigan, USA, of a chemical agent dangerous to health, life and development of all mammals is described. This gives an indication that injury and death to all mammals, as in the Sevaso disaster, including teratogenesis may be expected to be a f...
Garcia P, Paris AC, Leufroy A, Popot MA, Bonnaire Y.A quantitative method, using LC/ESI-MS(n) with a quadrupole linear ion trap mass analyzer, has been developed for the analysis of ipratropium cation in horse plasma and urine. The method applies solid-phase extraction with WCX cartridges for plasma and MM2 cartridges for urine, prior to analysis by LC/ESI-MS(n). The efficiency of extraction combined with the sensitivity and the selectivity of MS(n) allows for the quantification of ipratropium cation at picogram per milliliter levels. The analytical capabilities of the method have been successfully checked by the quantitative analysis of ipratr...
Hendrickson DA, Nixon AJ.The genual joint in horses is complex, making synovial fluid aspiration and injection of the femoropatellar joint difficult. Horses commonly have signs of resentment to needle penetration at this site. We compared the safety and efficacy of a new technique, using a lateral approach to the femoropatellar joint, with that of the standard cranial approach in 12 horses. A significantly greater amount of fluid was obtained with the lateral approach (2.0 +/- 0.5 ml, mean +/- SEM) than with the cranial approach (0.9 +/- 0.2 ml). Significant differences were not observed in color, nucleated cell count...
Meyer C, Gerber R, Guthrie AJ.A 4-year-old Thoroughbred gelding racehorse was referred to the Onderstepoort Veterinary Academic Hospital (OVAH) with a history of post-race distress and collapse. In the absence of any obvious abnormalities in the preceding diagnostic work-up, a standard exercise test was performed to determine an underlying cause for the post-race distress reported. In this particular case oxygen desaturation became evident at speeds as slow as 6 m/s, where PO2 was measured at 82.3 mm Hg. Similarly at a blood pH of 7.28, PCO2 had dropped to 30.0 mm Hg indicating a combined metabolic acidosis and respiratory...
Senderska-Płonowska M, Siwińska N, Zak-Bochenek A, Rykała M, Słowikowska M, Madej JP, Kaleta-Kuratewicz K, Niedźwiedź A.Obesity is a common problem in horses. The associations between obesity and equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) and between EMS and laminitis are known. However, there is a lack of data on whether obesity itself can affect hoof lamellae. Forelimbs and blood from 12 draft horses (six obese and six lean) from a slaughterhouse were acquired. To exclude laminitis and EMS horses, insulin concentration was measured, and hooves were radiographed. Histological evaluation was performed. The shape of the primary and secondary epidermal lamellae (PEL and SEL) was evaluated, and the length of the keratinized ...
Pusterla N, Hagerty D, Mapes S, Vangeem J, Groves LT, Dinucci M, Fielding LC, Higgins JC.This study investigated the role of a district irrigation canal in Nevada County, California, USA, as the point source of infection for Neorickettsia risticii, causative agent of equine neorickettsiosis (EN). A total of 568 freshwater snails comprising Juga spp., Planorbella subcrenata (Carpenter, 1857) (Rough Rams-horn), Physella virgata (Gould, 1855) (Protean Physa) and feces from three horses with EN were collected and tested for N. risticii by real-time PCR. A total of four freshwater snails tested PCR positive for N. risticii. Phylogenetic analysis showed 99.8-100% homology between the di...
Ross MW, Richardson DW, Beroza GA.Thirteen Standardbreds had subchondral lucency of the third carpal bone (C3), described as single or multiple central areas of C3 bone loss in the radial fossa. Sclerosis of the radial fossa was also detected. The mean age of 9 stallions, 3 mares, and 1 gelding was 4.1 years (range, 3 to 7 years). All horses had an acute moderate to severe lameness referable to the middle carpal joint. A dorsoproximal dorsodistal (skyline) radiographic projection was most useful and identified mild (3 horses), moderate (6 horses), and severe (4 horses) subchondral lucency and sclerosis of the radial fossa. The...
Bentinck-Smith J, Tasker JB.The following topics are discussed in this presentation: A. Recent advances in the use and interpretation and methodology of antibiotic susceptibility testing. B. Improvements in sample submittal to obtain accurate results from your laboratory. C. Staining blood, bone marrow, and cytology specimens in the office laboratory. D. Pathogenesis and differential diagnosis of lipemia. E. Differential diagnosis of abdominal effusions.
Edwards GT.Of 1388 horses and ponies examined at two abattoirs in the north of England from November 1979 to September 1981, 123 (8.7 per cent) showed evidence of hydatid infection. Prevalence of infection was closely related to age, rising from nil in animals up to two years old to over 20 per cent of those over eight years. Full-mouthed horses and ponies had similar prevalence rates (14.9 and 14.5 per cent, respectively), but horses had nearly twice as many viable infections as ponies. The prevalence of infection varied with the region of origin of full-mouthed horses and ponies, with 18 per cent of th...
Kriegshäuser G, Kuechler E, Skern T.Equine rhinitis A virus (ERAV) is a picornavirus which causes an acute respiratory infection in horses worldwide, and virus neutralization (VN) has been the standard method for the detection of ERAV antibody in horse serum. Previous studies have identified recombinant virion protein VP1 (rVP1) purified under native conditions to be of high potential for the development of a diagnostic ERAV enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). This study presents an optimized protocol for the expression and purification of native full-length rVP1. Furthermore, we demonstrate that, upon denaturation, rVP1 ...
Kilcoyne I, Dechant JE, Kass PH, Spier SJ.Objective-To determine the outcome of penetrating injuries to the central region of the foot in equids and identify factors that may affect treatment and outcome. Design-Retrospective case series. Animals-63 equids (61 horses, 1 pony, and 1 mule). Procedures-Records of equids incurring puncture wounds through the frog (cuneus ungulae) or collateral sulci of the foot between 1998 and 2008 were reviewed. Evaluated factors that were hypothesized to affect outcome included signalment, degree of lameness, foot affected, duration between injury and admission, and treatment. Injuries were graded from...
Stephens PR, Richardson DW, Ross MW, Ford TS.The anatomy of the dorsal pouch of the proximal intertarsal joint (PIJ) and its communication with the tarsocrural joint (TCJ) was studied in 15 pairs of hocks from young and mature horses. The mediolateral length of the TCJ-PIJ fenestration was 14 to 29 mm. The potential volume of the dorsal pouch of the PIJ was 3 to 5 ml, and a recess extended 10 to 28 mm medial to the medial commissure of the TCJ-PIJ fenestration. In a correlated clinical study, osteochondral fragments were identified radiographically within the dorsal pouch (category 1) or dorsal joint capsule (category 2) of the PIJ in 17...
Brown L, Townsend W, Waltisbuhl D.The unique challenges that laboratories in Queensland and New South Wales faced during the response to the 2007 equine influenza outbreak and how these were managed are described.
Urosevic M, Lako B, Milanov D, Urosevic I, Aurich C.Uterine microbiology, antimicrobial susceptibility and endometrial cytology were investigated in a total of 51 mares with fertility problems from 16 different stud farms in Serbia. Uterine cultures were performed after collection with a double guarded uterine swab, and endometrial cytology was evaluated after collection of endometrial cells with a special device (cytology brush). In 21 of 51 mares, at least one bacterial species was isolated from the uterus; the most frequent were Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus (13 isolates) and E. coli (four isolates). All isolates of Streptococcus e...
Guthrie AJ, Killeen VM, Mülders MS, Grosskopf JF.The ratio of the cardiopulmonary blood volume to stroke volume is called the cardiopulmonary flow index (CPFI). The CPFI can be determined indirectly from the simultaneous recording of a radiocardiogram and an electrocardiogram. The CPFI and cardiac output were measured simultaneously in horses (n = 10) that were diagnosed as having cardiac disease. The diseased subjects were probably all exposed to feed contaminated with the ionophore, salinomycin, and all showed clinical signs indicative of chronic toxic myocarditis. The results obtained from these subjects were compared with those from cont...
Greiner S.The manuscript has the title: "Erkandtnus deren innerlichen Krankheiten des Pferds überhaupt". Through two take downs of the lectures of Ludwig Scotti, the founder of the first school for veterinarians in the German speaking part of Europe and its first teacher, the manuscript is identified as another take down. The first part of the manuscript, which is about internal medicine, in large passages is a literally translation of Lafosse's "Guide de Maréchal". In most passages the second part, which is about pharmacology, is a copy of the German translation of Claude Bourgelat's "Matière médic...
Kearns CF, Lenhart JA, McKeever KH.Erythropoietin (EPO) is the primary hormone of erythropoiesis. Administration of recombinant human erythropoietin (rhuEPO) to improve racing performance in the horse represents a new form of blood doping, which has been associated with increased mortality. While immunoassay kits have become plentiful, very few commercial hormone assays are made specifically for equine research. There is a strong degree of sequence homology reported for EPO among species, which has allowed antibodies designed for human EPO research to be used to determine EPO concentration in other species. The objective of the...
Khan A, Mushtaq MH, Muhammad J, Ahmed B, Khan EA, Khan A, Zakki SA, Altaf E, Haq I, Saleem A, Warraich MA, Ahmed N, Rabaan AA.There are different opinions around the World regarding the zoonotic capability of H3N8 equine influenza viruses. In this report, we have tried to summarize the findings of different research and review articles from Chinese, English, and Mongolian Scientific Literature reporting the evidence for equine influenza virus infections in human beings. Different search engines i.e. CNKI, PubMed, ProQuest, Chongqing Database, Mongol Med, and Web of Knowledge yielded 926 articles, of which 32 articles met the inclusion criteria for this review. Analyzing the epidemiological and Phylogenetic data from ...
Quieroz AO, Nehme-Russell NS, Brandão A, Jansen AM.'Mal de Cadeiras' is a disease which causes great mortality in horses in the Pantanal Matogrossense region, Brazil. The agent of this disease is Trypanosoma evansi, a kinetoplastid flagellate which belongs to the Trypanosomatidae family, classified into the Salivarian section. Transmission occurs mechanically by haematophagous Diptera, mainly by Stomoxys sp. and Tabanus sp. and vampire bats. Outbreaks of Mal de Cadeiras in horses result in economic losses, thus limiting their use in cattle raising. Ten isolates of T. evansi recently derived from coati (Nasua nasua, Carnivora, Procyonidae), hor...
Tomizawa N, Nishimura R, Sasaki N, Kadosawa T, Senba H, Hara S, Takeuchi A.Cervical myelography and survey radiography was performed on 12 light breed wobbling foals and a new radiographic measurement method was applied for more accurate diagnosis of cervical vertebral instability. Ratios of stenosis of the spinal canal on survey radiography and myelography using relative values in an individual foal were defined on radiograms of lateral flexed position of mid-cervical region, and coincidence between the ratios and histopathological lesions in the cervical spinal cord was investigated. Five of 6 foals had ratios of stenosis on myelography more than 40% at the interve...
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...
Jacobi S, Townsend WM, Bolin CA.To evaluate whether equine serum administered via a simulated subpalpebral lavage system (SPL) supports proliferation of Streptococcus zooepidemicus or Pseudomonas aeruginosa within the tubing. Methods: A sterile i.v. catheter with injection cap was inserted into sterilized silicone tubing (Mila). To mimic an SPL within the dorsal conjunctival fornix, the tubing was secured to an elevated platform. The tip of the tubing extended from the platform into a vial containing culture medium just inoculated with approximately 1.5 x 10(8) CFU/mL P. aeruginosa or S. zooepidemicus. To mimic administratio...
Selwet M.The research concerned the determination of the frequency of occurrence of selected virulence genes (cadF, flaA, iam) and genes responsible for the formation of the CDT cytotoxin (cdtA, cdtB, cdtC) in Campylobacter spp. The research object consisted of 100 faecal samples collected from stallions showing no symptoms of campylobacteriosis. The presence of bacteria of the genus Campylobacter spp. Was found in 25 individuals (25%). The molecular biology techniques used in the research allowed us to distinguish the following species from the positive samples: C. jejuni (68%); C. coli (28%) and C. l...
Ferrante PL, Freeman DE, Ramberg CF, Kronfeld DS.Multicompartmental analysis was applied to study the kinetics of D-xylose distribution after IV administration to healthy mares deprived of food for 12 and 96 hours. Urinary excretion of D-xylose was measured over a 15-hour period after administration. The plasma D-xylose concentrations in this study were in the range found after oral tolerance testing. The disposition of D-xylose was described by a two-compartment model with linear kinetic characteristics. Total volume of distribution decreased significantly (P < 0.025) from 0.270 L/kg of body weight after the 12-hour period of food depriv...
Lohmann KL, Allen AL.A mature Quarter horse was euthanized following colic of 3 days duration. Postmortem, the large intestine, except the descending colon, was diffusely distended and associated with adhesion of the transverse colon to the pancreas, which had changes consistent with chronic active interstitial pancreatitis. Other lesions included hepatic fibrosis, erosive gastritis, and bilateral adrenal cortical hyperplasia. Pancréatite interstitielle chronique active comme cause d’une obstruction du côlon transversal et de coliques chez un cheval. Un cheval Quarter horse adulte a été euthanasié après de...
Zakrajsek E.A recently purchased 16-year-old Thoroughbred mare with a history of recurrent colic and low body weight, also had lameness in 3 limbs, pain at the sacro-iliac joint, and increased corneal opacity of the right eye. Response to supportive therapy was poor and euthanasia was elected. A postmortem examination and histopathology confirmed cyathostomiasis within the large colon and cecum and chronic anterior uveitis of the right eye. Une jument Thoroughbred, âgée de 16 ans et récemment achetée, avec une anamnèse de coliques récurrentes et de faible poids corporel souffrait aussi de boiterie ...
Palmer JE, Benson CE, Lotz GW.Ten healthy, mature ponies were orally infected with Ehrlichia risticii using Ehrlichia-infected P388D1 mouse monocyte tissue culture cells. Seven developed signs of equine ehrlichial colitis including fever, depression, anorexia, reduced borborygmi, increased abdominal hyperresonance, and diarrhoea. Three remained clinically normal apart from early fever in one. Indirect fluorescent antibody titres were detected in the clinically affected ponies by Days 12 to 17 post infection and increased rapidly to high levels (1:640 to 1:5120) which were maintained until the end of the observation period ...
Petersen JL, Lewis RM, Embertson R, Valberg SJ, Holcombe SJ.Large colon volvulus (LCV) is a life-threatening form of colic that occurs when the large colon rotates 360° or more on its axis, resulting in colonic distention and ischaemia. Any horse can suffer from LCV, but the risk is greatest for periparturient Thoroughbred broodmares; the objective of this study was to estimate the heritability of LCV in these horses. The criteria for classification as an LCV case were being a Thoroughbred broodmare from one of three farms in central Kentucky and having had surgical correction for LCV. Controls were identified as Thoroughbred broodmares present on the...
Dai CB, Xiao Y, Lu H, Shen RX, Shao YM.Membrane protein GP90 of China equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) vaccine strain (DLV) and its parental wild type LN strain were expressed with Bac-to-Bac baculovirus expression system and BALB/c mice were inoculated with purified protein, thereby to explore the availability of protein for differential diagnosis and potential for preparing genetically engineered vaccine. Methods: The authors infected donkey PBMC culture with China EIAV vaccine strain (DLV) and its parental wild type LN strain, extracted its proviral DNA as template, amplified the GP90 of DLV and LN, respectively, and expres...
Murray RC, Gaughan EM, Debowes RM, Hoskinson JJ.To assess feasibility of insertion of 4.5-mm Herbert cannulated bone screws (HS) using fluoroscopic guidance and compare the mechanical shear strength of these HS and 4.5-mm AO cortical bone screws (AO) for fixation of dorsal plane slab osteotomies in equine cadaver third carpal bones (C3). Methods: Eight equine cadavers. Methods: Bone mineral composition and density of contralateral C3 were confirmed to be equivalent using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. A standard 10-mm C3 slab osteotomy was reduced using HS or AO instrumentation under fluoroscopic guidance. Specimens were loaded in shear ...
