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.
Rijckaert J, Raes E, Buczinski S, Dumoulin M, Deprez P, Van Ham L, van Loon G, Pardon B.Spinal cord dysfunction/compression and ataxia are common in horses. Presumptive diagnosis is most commonly based on neurological examination and cervical radiography, but the interest into the diagnostic value of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) with recording of magnetic motor evoked potentials has increased. The problem for the evaluation of diagnostic tests for spinal cord dysfunction is the absence of a gold standard in the living animal. Objective: To compare diagnostic accuracy of TMS, cervical radiography, and neurological examination. Methods: One hundred seventy-four horses ad...
Kadic LIM, Rodgerson DH, Newsom LE, Spirito MA.Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) of the distal intermediate ridge of the tibia (DIRT) is commonly identified on either the lateral to medial (LM) or dorso45°medial-plantarolateral oblique (D45M-PLO) projection of the tarsus. This manuscript describes a retrospective case series out of Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, for which medical records and radiographic projections of the tarsus were reviewed, consistent with Keeneland's repository requirements. This original investigation identified seven yearling Thoroughbred horses between 2008 and 2018 with radiographic signs of atypical osteochondr...
Pérez-Nogués M, Vaughan B, Phillips KL, Galuppo LD.To determine the safety and efficacy of caudal cervical articular process joint arthroscopy by using needle arthroscopy in standing sedated horses. Methods: Prospective experimental case series. Methods: Six adult horses. Methods: Three horses underwent exploration of bilateral C5-6 vertebral articular process joints and three bilateral C6-7 articular process joints by using a 1.2 × 65-mm needle arthroscope under standing sedation. The 16-gauge arthroscopic trocar and canula assembly was inserted in the desired articular process joint under ultrasonographic guidance without distention of ...
Theelen MJP, Wilson WD, Byrne BA, Edman JM, Kass PH, Mughini-Gras L, Magdesian KG.Antimicrobial treatment protocols for foals with sepsis that do not improve clinically often are adjusted based on bacteriological and antimicrobial susceptibility testing results from samples collected at hospital admission. Objective: To evaluate whether hospitalization for ≥48 hours affects bacteriological and antimicrobial susceptibility testing results. Methods: Two-hundred sixty-seven foals <30 days of age admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit and diagnosed with sepsis. Methods: Medical records were reviewed retrospectively to identify foals with sepsis and positive bacteri...
Jenkins E, Backwell AL, Bellaw J, Colpitts J, Liboiron A, McRuer D, Medill S, Parker S, Shury T, Smith M, Tschritter C, Wagner B, Poissant J....Sable Island, Nova Scotia, Canada hosts one of few natural populations of feral horses (Equus caballus) never exposed to anthelmintics. Coproculture revealed cyathostomes, Strongylus equinus, S. edentatus, and S. vulgaris, with S. equinus (unusually) dominating in adult horses and cyathostomes dominating in young horses (<3 years of age). We examined 35 horses found dead in the springs of 2017 and 2018, as well as fecal samples from live horses in spring (n = 45) and summer 2018 (n = 236) using McMaster fecal flotation and Baermann larval sedimentation on fresh samples, and modified Wiscon...
Fenn MS, Bortsie-Aryee AD, Perkins GA, Mann S, Tomlinson JE, Wood EM, Mix SE, Stokol T.Crossmatching is used to prevent life-threatening transfusion reactions in horses. Laboratory methods are laborious and technically challenging, which is impractical during emergencies. Objective: Evaluate agreement between a stall-side crossmatch kit (KIT) and a laboratory method (LAB) in horses with known and unknown blood types. Methods: Twenty-four blood-typed and alloantibody-screened healthy adult horses (Aim 1) and 156 adult horses of unknown blood type (Aim 2). Methods: Prospective, blinded study. Expected positive (n = 35) and negative (n = 36) crossmatches among 24 antibody and blood...
Padalino B, Davis GL, Raidal SL.Transportation has been suggested as a risk factor for gastric ulceration in horses, but limited evidence supports this assumption. Methods: Twenty-six Standardbred, Thoroughbred, and Warmblood mares from a university teaching herd. Methods: Twelve mares were confined for 12 hours, overnight, in reproductive stocks with indwelling nasogastric tubes (NGTs) to assess pH of gastric fluid (GF). Gastric ulceration was assessed endoscopically before and after confinement. Subsequently, 26 horses were transported for 12 hours, overnight, in 2 consignments. During transportation, GF was aspirated ...
LaFrentz S, Abarca E, Mohammed HH, Cuming R, Arias CR.The equine conjunctival microbiota has often been reported to be dominated by Gram-positive species such as Staphylococcus sp., Bacillus sp., and Corynebacterium sp. However, traditional culture-based methods can only recover a fraction of the bacterial species present in the sample. Objective: This pilot study aimed at exploring the diversity of the equine conjunctival microbiota using culture-independent methods. Methods: Eight horses were included in this study, and only eyes with normal ophthalmic examination (n = 15 eyes) were sampled. Methods: Conjunctival biopsies (culture-independent...
Liu S, Jiang S, Dong XG, Cui R, Ling Y, Zhao C.The Debao pony is a well-known dwarf horse breed in China. High-mobility group AT-hook 2 (HMGA2) gene is regarded as one of the important candidate genes regulating body height in horses. The aim of this study was to study the association between mutations in HMGA2 gene and withers height in Debao ponies. The polymorphisms in all exons and partial introns of the HMGA2 gene were screened with sequencing across 180 Debao ponies. And the association between the DNA variants and withers height was analyzed. Seven genetic variants were identified in HMGA2 gene, including six novel variants. Among t...
Drozdzewska K, Potocnik E, Schwarz B.Placing a nasogastric tube can be a life-saving act for a horse but is considered an occupational hazard for veterinarians. An online questionnaire was performed to assess and specify potential risks. 123 equine veterinarians completed the survey, and the majority admitted using the mouth to handle the end of the nasogastric tube (sucking or blowing air) and having accidentally swallowed or aspirated stomach content or medications. This can potentially lead to aspiration pneumonia or pneumonitis. Mineral oil seems to be especially dangerous as aspiration may be asymptomatic at the beginning an...
Scholtzek AD, Hanke D, Eichhorn I, Walther B, Lübke-Becker A, van Duijkeren E, Köck R, Schwarz S, Feßler AT.Based on antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST), correct classifications as susceptible, intermediate or resistant are challenging for some antimicrobial agent-bacterial species combinations. In this study, we investigated 19 equine Staphylococcus aureus isolates for their susceptibility to the combination sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim (SXT) by using broth microdilution (BMD), agar disk diffusion (DD) and automated test systems. To elucidate the presence of the corresponding genetic resistance properties among the isolates, whole genome sequence analysis was performed and the genomes were ...
Li F, Wang R, Guo Y, Li N, Feng Y, Xiao L.Limited data are available on infection rates and genetic identity of Enterocytozoon bieneusi and Giardia duodenalis in horses and donkeys. In this study, 865 fecal specimens were collected from donkeys (n = 540) and horses (n = 325) in three provinces and autonomous regions in northern China during 2015-2019. Enterocytozoon bieneusi was detected and genotyped by PCR and sequence analyses of the ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and G. duodenalis was detected and genotyped by PCR and sequence analyses of the β-giardin, glutamate dehydrogenase, and triosephosphate isomerase g...
Lores M, Yarbrough T.A 9-year-old pony gelding was evaluated because it was suspected that a persistent oronasal fistula had developed after a fractured right maxillary second premolar tooth had been extracted via repulsion 6 months earlier. Results: Unilateral mucopurulent nasal discharge and malodorous breath were noted on clinical examination. Examination of the oral cavity revealed a 1 × 0.5-cm defect at the oral aspect of the right maxillary second premolar alveolus, from which feed material was extracted. Endoscopic examination revealed feed material in the rostral aspect of the right nasal cavity, confirmi...
Long A, Nolen-Walston R.Serum amyloid A (SAA) is a marker of inflammation and infection in the horse that can be assessed in the field, with rapid and marked changes seen following initiation of an inflammatory stimulus. This quality of SAA also makes its clinical use challenging, because even small inflammatory conditions can cause large changes in SAA levels. Review of the current literature provides guidelines for responses of SAA to various conditions, which can be applied to specific clinical cases. The practitioner is encouraged to use SAA in conjunction with physical examination and other diagnostic modalities...
Hansen TL, Bobel JM, Rankins EM, Sanchez LC, Warren LK.Digesta retention time within specific segments of the equine gastrointestinal tract (GIT) may be more relevant to scientific inquiries than total tract mean retention time (TTMRT); however, measuring retention time in individual segments requires access to the digestive tract. The objective of this study was to compare prececal, cecal, and colonic mean retention time (MRT) with model-derived compartment MRT. A cecally fistulated gelding was fed indigestible particulate and liquid markers to determine TTMRT and dosed with different pairs of particulate and liquid markers into the cecum (hindgu...
Paillot R.The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has recently estimated that the world equid population exceeds 110 million (FAOSTAT 2017).[...].
Domino M, Jasinski T, Kautz E, Juszczuk-Kubiak E, Ferreira-Dias G, Zabielski R, Sady M, Gajewski Z.Equine endometrosis is a multifactorial chronic degenerative condition, considered to be one of a major causes of equine infertility. The formation of periglandular fibrosis seems to be linked to chronic inflammation of the mare endometrium in a paracrine way and in a response to numerous forms of inflammatory stimuli elicit the net deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) around the endometrial glands and stroma. We hypothesized some of these stimuli, such as monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and hyaluronan synthases (HASs), may share the nuclear factor-κB (NF...
Veado HC, Conceição RS, Nogueira K, Fino TCM, Silva AS, Castro MB, Soto-Blanco B, Câmara ACL.The findings of massive Africanized honeybee stings in two hair sheep and a mare are reported. One sheep died 15 h after attack, and the survivors developed skin necrosis on the sting sites. Pathological evaluation revealed necrosis in the dermis, degeneration of the tubular epithelial cells, and multifocal hemorrhages in heart and spleen. The massive attack by Africanized honeybees induced lesions in the skin, heart, muscles, kidneys, and lungs.
Xie J, Tong P, Zhang A, Song X, Zhang L, Shaya N, Kuang L.In 2015, a novel equine parvovirus, equine parvovirus-cerebrospinal fluid (EqPV-CSF), was identified from cerebrospinal fluid of a horse with neurological signs and lymphocytosis in USA. In our study, an EqPV-CSF-like virus was detected from 15 serum samples of 65 imported thoroughbred horses during custom quarantine in north Xinjiang province, China. Further field investigation in several major horse-producing areas in Xinjiang using specific PCR showed that this virus was detected mainly in thoroughbred horses (39/154 positive) previously imported, not in local breeds (0/127 positive). Phylo...
van Zadelhoff C, Schwarz T, Smith S, Engerand A, Taylor S. To describe detectable and non-detectable naturally occurring cartilage damage of the equine distal interphalangeal (DIP) joint using plain magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and gadolinium and saline MR arthrography. The second objective was to quantify the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy in detection of cartilage damage. In a pilot study, the distal limbs of two horses with confirmed osteoarthritis of the DIP joint were imaged with low-field MR. Magnetic resonance images were assessed in consensus by three observers and compared to gross pathological findings. Subsequently, a prospectiv...
Vitale V, Viu J, Armengou L, Ríos J, Jose-Cunilleras E.To evaluate the prognostic value of measuring heart rate variability (HRV) in horses with colic at the time of admission to a referral hospital. Methods: 51 horses > 1 year of age with colic (41 that survived [survivors] and 10 that died or were euthanized [nonsurvivors]). Methods: HRV was recorded within 1 hour after admission by use of heart rate sensors with horses restrained in stocks. A 5-minute recording period was analyzed to obtain HRV measurements (eg, SD of R-R intervals [SDRR], root mean square of successive differences between R-R intervals [RMSSD], and geometric SDs determined ...
Manguin E, Pépin E, Boivin R, Leclere M.There are limited data on potential dysbiosis of the airway microbiota in horses with asthma. Objective: We hypothesized that the respiratory microbiota of horses with moderate asthma is altered. Our objectives were (a) to quantify tracheal bacterial populations using culture and qPCR, (2) to compare aerobic culture and qPCR, and (c) to correlate bacterial populations with bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cytology. Methods: Eighteen horses with moderate asthma from a hospital population and 10 controls. Methods: Prospective case-control study. Aerobic culture was performed on tracheal aspir...
Miagkoff L, Bonilla AG.To investigate the use of a needle arthroscope for diagnostic tenoscopy of the carpal sheath in standing horses. Methods: Experimental study. Methods: Six forelimbs for the cadaveric part of the study and six horses for the in vivo part of the study. Methods: Six cadaveric limbs were used to perform carpal sheath tenoscopy with a 1.2-mm-diameter needle arthroscope (65 and 100 mm long), followed by tenoscopy with a 4-mm arthroscope through a standard proximolateral approach. Then, unilateral standing carpal sheath tenoscopy was performed in six healthy sedated horses with a 65-mm-long needle ...
Hurcombe SDA.The assessment of blood analytes in racehorses can provide useful data on performance and health. The horses' adaptive responses to training that occur to optimize performance should be considered when interpreting alterations seen on laboratory results. Similarly, the alterations observed in laboratory test results can identify subclinical and clinical disease and be helpful for identifying organ dysfunction and, in many cases, monitoring progress and response to treatment. This article discusses hematologic and biochemical tests that are important in the evaluation of performance and health ...
Newman AW.Clinical pathology results are only as good as the quality of samples and accompanying information submitted to the diagnostic laboratory. The frustration of nondiagnostic or equivocal test results can often be avoided by taking the time to follow sample handling and submission guidelines. This article discusses preanalytical errors that commonly affect the accuracy of hematology, chemistry, and cytology testing, and offers practical tips for preventing these errors and maximizing diagnostic yield.
DeNotta SL, Brooks MB.Horses with clinical signs of unprovoked or excessive hemorrhage should be evaluated for underlying platelet defects or coagulopathies. This article provides an overview of preliminary screening and definitive tests to assess coagulation and identify hemostatic defects in horses, as well as a review of the hemostatic disorders most frequently encountered in clinical practice.
Chidlow H, Giguère S, Camus M, Wells B, Howerth E, Berghaus R, McConachie Beasley E.Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis is an important component of the evaluation of horses with neurologic disease. Lumbosacral (LS) centesis is routine, but CSF is also collected from the space between the first and second cervical vertebrae (C1-C2). Objective: To compare collection times, CSF cytology results, and equine protozoal myelitis (EPM) titers of CSF collected from the C1-C2 and LS sites. Methods: Fifteen university-owned adult horses with no evidence of neurologic disease, and 9 horses with signs of neurologic disease: 3 university-owned and 6 client-owned. Methods: Prospective study...
Duquesne F, Merlin A, Pérez-Cobo I, Sedlák K, Melzer F, Overesch G, Fretin D, Iwaniak W, Breuil MF, Wernery U, Hicks J, Agüero-García M....The accurate identification of Taylorella equigenitalis strains is essential to improve worldwide prevention and control strategies for contagious equine metritis (CEM). This study compared 367 worldwide equine strains using multilocus sequence typing according to the geographical origin, isolation year and equine breed. The strains were divided into 49 sequence types (STs), including 10 described for the first time. Three major and three minor clonal complexes (CCs), and 11 singletons, were identified. The genetic heterogeneity was low (0.13 STs/strain) despite the wide diversity of geographi...
Szóstek-Mioduchowska A, Słowińska M, Pacewicz J, Skarzynski DJ, Okuda K.Equine endometrial fibrosis (endometrosis) is described as a degenerative chronic condition in the uterus. Its characteristic feature is excessive deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) components around the endometrial glands and stroma. Although matrix metallopeptidases (MMPs) that mediate ECM turnover are important factors in the process of fibrosis, knowledge of their expression and regulation in endometrosis is limited. In other species, one of the important regulators of MMPs and tissue inhibitors of MMPs (TIMPs) is transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1. The goal of this study was to de...
Sallé G, Guillot J, Tapprest J, Foucher N, Sevin C, Laugier C.Horses are infected by a wide range of parasite species that form complex communities. Parasite control imposes significant constraints on parasite communities whose monitoring remains, however, difficult to track through time. Postmortem examination is a reliable method to quantify parasite communities. Here, we compiled 1,673 necropsy reports accumulated over 29 years, in the reference necropsy centre from Normandy (France). The burden of non-strongylid species was quantified and the presence of strongylid species was noted. Details of horse deworming history and the cause of death were reg...
Gulati BR, Singha H, Singh BK, Virmani N, Kumar S, Singh RK.Japanese encephalitis (JE) is an important vector-borne viral disease of humans and horses in Asia. JE outbreaks occur regularly amongst humans in certain parts of India and sporadic cases occur among horses. In this study, JE seroprevalence and evidence of JE virus (JEV) infection among horses in Haryana (India) is described. Antibodies against JEV were detected in 67 out of 637 (10.5%) horses screened between 2006 and 2010. Two foals exhibiting neurological signs were positive for JEV RNA by RT-PCR; JEV was isolated from the serum of one of the foals collected on the second day of illness. T...
Cehak A, Rohn K, Barton AK, Stadler P, Ohnesorge B.Dynamic nasopharyngeal collapse with upper airway obstruction is an important cause of exercise intolerance in performance horses. Its underlying pathophysiology is not fully understood. We hypothesize that head position affects pharyngeal diameter, and thus head position may be a contributing factor to nasopharyngeal obstruction. Fifteen adult healthy horses were subjected to endoscopy and radiography at rest. The pharyngeal diameter was measured at nine different head and neck positions. The effect of sedation and breathing cycle on the pharyngeal diameter was determined, and the relationshi...
Proudman CJ, Dugdale AH, Senior JM, Edwards GB, Smith JE, Leuwer ML, French NP.Mortality rates for horses that have undergone emergency abdominal surgery are higher than for other procedures. Here, multivariable modelling of data from 774 surgical colic cases is used to identify pre-operative and anaesthesia-related variables associated with intra- and post-operative mortality. Intra-operative mortality was significantly (P<0.05), and positively associated with heart rate and packed cell volume (PCV) at admission, and negatively associated with the severity of pain. Post-operative mortality increased with increasing age and PCV at admission. Draught horses, Thoroughbr...
Lindsay DS, Dubey JP, Kennedy TJ.The present study examined the efficacy of ponazuril in inhibiting merozoite production of Sarcocystis neurona in cell cultures. Ponazuril inhibited merozoite production by more that 90% in cultures of S. neurona treated with 1.0 microg/ml ponazuril and greater than 95% inhibition of merozoite production was observed when infected cultures were treated with 5.0 microg/ml ponazuril. Ponazuril may have promise as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of S. neurona induced equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) in horses.
Bullone M, de Lagarde M, Vargas A, Lavoie JP.The identification of serum biomarkers of lung inflammation would facilitate the diagnosis of inflammatory airway disease (IAD) in horses. Objective: Horses with IAD have higher serum concentrations of markers of inflammation compared to controls. Methods: Twelve horses with IAD and 10 control horses. Methods: This was a prospective case-control study. Blood and BALF were collected from horses with IAD and controls. Serum concentration of surfactant protein D (SP-D), haptoglobin, serum amyloid A (SAA) and of the soluble form of triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 1 (sTREM-1) was mea...
Ochala J, Finno CJ, Valberg SJ.Myosinopathies are defined as a group of muscle disorders characterized by mutations in genes encoding myosin heavy chains. Their exact molecular and cellular mechanisms remain unclear. In the present study, we have focused our attention on a -related E321G amino acid substitution within the head region of the type IIx skeletal myosin heavy chain, associated with clinical signs of atrophy, inflammation and/or profound rhabdomyolysis, known as equine myosin heavy chain myopathy. We performed Mant-ATP chase experiments together with force measurements on isolated IIx myofibres from control horse...
Payne SL, La Celle K, Pei XF, Qi XM, Shao H, Steagall WK, Perry S, Fuller F.The Wyoming strain of equine infectious anaemia virus (EIAV) is a highly virulent field strain that replicates to high titre in vitro only in primary equine monocyte-derived macrophages. In contrast, Wyoming-derived fibroblast-adapted EIAV strains (Malmquist virus) replicate in primary foetal equine kidney and equine dermis cells as well as in the cell lines FEA and Cf2Th. Wyoming and Malmquist viruses differ extensively both in long terminal repeat (LTR) and envelope region sequences. We have compared the promoter activities of the Wyoming LTR with those of LTRs derived from fibroblast-adapte...
Curtis RA, Viel L, McGuirk SM, Radostits OM, Harris FW.The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the importance of pulmonary auscultation for the clinician. It suggests a clarification and simplification of the terminology to be used which would be helpful to veterinary students and allow better communications between veterinarians. The interpretation of these sounds and the relationships to conditions and diseases of the lungs in cattle, horses, sheep and goats are discussed.
al-Ani FK.Epizootic lymphangitis is a relatively common infectious disease of horses and other liquids in certain parts of the world. The infection rate varies according to the geographic area and the age of the animal. The disease is most commonly characterised by a cord-like appearance of the subcutaneous lymphatic and cutaneous pyogranulomas, the discharge from which contains spherical or pear-shaped bodies of the causal agent, Histoplasma farciminosum. Diagnosis can be made by the demonstration of typical organisms in stained smears, culture and tissue sections. Serological tests and a skin hypersen...
Adeyefa CA, Quayle K, McCauley JW.We describe a rapid method for genetic characterisation of influenza virus genes using reverse transcription and amplification by polymerase chain reaction (RT/PCR) of all virus segments simultaneously (multiplex RT/PCR) using primers based on the conserved terminal sequences. The product has been shown to be suitable for determination of partial nucleotide sequences which can be used to search nucleotide sequence databases and rapidly map the genetic origin of each segment. We illustrate the use of the method by analysing genetic reassortment in H7N7 equine influenza viruses.
Dixon PM, Tremaine WH, Pickles K, Kuhns L, Hawe C, McCann J, McGorum BC, Railton DI, Brammer S.Of 400 referred horses with dental disorders, 349 cases suffered from primary disorders of their cheek teeth, ninety of these from disorders of development or eruption, or displacements. These included 20 cases with rostral maxillary and caudal mandibular cheek teeth overgrowths, 16 with diastemata, 15 with grossly enlarged mandibular 'eruption cysts', 4 with grossly enlarged maxillary cheek teeth 'eruption cysts', 10 cases with supernumerary cheek teeth and 23 cases with displaced cheek teeth. These displacements were believed to be developmental in 16 cases and acquired in the remaining 7 ca...
Gillis C.Young elite athletes, particularly horses used for jumping, are at a relatively high risk for injury to the ligaments associated with the axial skeleton. Extreme back flexion appears to be a contributing factor to ligament damage. Back pain due to injury of the ligaments of the axial skeleton has often been considered to be secondary to lower limb injury, to the extent that a separate definitive diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis were unnecessary. Diagnostic imaging, ultrasound in particular, has demonstrated ligamentous damage that can be the limiting factor in return to previous athletic us...
Theodoridis A, Nevill EM, Els HJ, Boshoff ST.Five viruses, unrelated to bovine ephemeral fever virus (BEFV), were isolated from Culicoides biting-midges collected during the summer months of the years 1968-69 and 1969-70 near a cattle herd in which cases of BEF occurred and at an open horse stable at Onderstepoort. These viruses were investigated by means of serological, electron-microscopical and physicochemical tests. It was established that 2 isolates, Cul. 1/69 and Cul. 2/69, were related to each other and belonged to the Palyam subgroup of the genus Orbivirus, that isolate Cul. 3/69 belonged to the equine encephalosis subgroup of th...
DITCHFIELD J, MACPHERSON LW.From outbreaks of upper respiratory infection of horses in the Toronto area between 1960 and 1963, several viruses have been isolated. The viruses, isolated in tissue cultures or eggs, include an equine strain of Myxovirus parainfluenzae 3; two strains of equine influenza virus, A/equi-1/Prague/56, and A/equi-2/Miami/63; equine rhinopneumonitis virus, and two newly recognized viruses of the horse, equine rhinoviruses. In addition serological evidence suggested a widespread infection with these viruses in the population under study. Because of the identical clinical picture seen and the complex...
Sallé G, Kornaś S, Basiaga M.Equine strongyles are a major health issue. Large strongyles can cause death of horses while cyathostomins (small strongyles) have shown increased resistance to anthelmintics worldwide. Description of strongyle communities have accumulated but little is known about the diversity of these communities and underpinning environmental factors. Strongyles were recovered after ivermectin treatment from 48 horses located in six premises in Poland. Correlation between previously published species fecundity and the observed relative abundance and prevalence were estimated. Significance of horse sex was ...
Lazary S, Gerber H, Glatt PA, Straub R.The distribution of equine leucocyte antigens (ELA) in horses affected by equine sarcoid tumours was determined and compared with unaffected controls. ELA-haplotype W3,B1 occurred more frequently in affected riding horses of Irish, Swiss and French background. The combined data for the three breeds resulted in a chi 2 value of 20.35 (P less than 0.0005 after correction). Simultaneously, ELA-specificity W11 was more frequently found in horses of Irish background, while W5 was found in Swiss and French horses with sarcoids. The combined data for haplotype W3,B1 and/or W5 specificity demonstrated...
Ivens PA, Matthews D, Webb K, Newton JR, Steward K, Waller AS, Robinson C, Slater JD.Strangles is the most commonly diagnosed and important infectious disease of horses worldwide. Very little is known about the temporo-spatial and molecular epidemiology of strangles. The disease is not notifiable in the UK and there are few published data on the geographical locations of outbreaks. Objective: To investigate whether typing of a surface protein (SeM) of Streptococcus equi ssp. equi (S. equi), the causative agent of strangles, is a useful epidemiological tool. Methods: The variable region of the SeM gene was amplified from 145 isolates of S. equi by PCR and sequenced. Different S...
Pearce SG, Bouré LP, Taylor JA, Peregrine AS.A 12-year-old Arabian gelding with a granuloma caused by the nematode Halicephalobus gingivalis caudal and dorsal to the left orbit was examined. There was no evidence of dissemination of the nematode to the kidneys or the CNS, and the horse was treated with ivermectin (1.2 mg/kg [0.55 mg/lb] of body weight, p.o., every 2 weeks for 3 treatments). The granuloma was surgically debulked 2 days after the first dose of ivermectin. The granuloma resolved with no evidence of nematode infection after 18 months. Halicephalobus gingivalis is a ubiquitous saprophytic nematode that has been reported to in...
Horsington J, Lynch SE, Gilkerson JR, Studdert MJ, Hartley CA.Of the many members that comprise the family Picornaviridae, only two species are known to infect horses: equine rhinitis A virus (ERAV) and equine rhinitis B virus (ERBV). Each species now occupies a distinct phylogenetic branch within the family, with the single serotype of ERAV grouping with the aphthoviruses, such as foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), and the three serotypes of ERBV as the sole members of the genus Erbovirus. The high seroprevalence of equine picornaviruses in horse populations worldwide contrasts with the relatively few reports of detection of these viruses and poor und...
Puotunen-Reinert A.In a retrospective study, the prognostic value and individual merit of seven variables, used in routine examination of colic cases, were tested. The following variables proved to be significant in discriminating between horses which survived and those which died: heart rate (P less than 0.00005), packed cell volume (P less than 0.00005) and intensity of colic signs (P less than 0.0001).
Barrey E, Jayr L, Mucher E, Gospodnetic S, Joly F, Benech P, Alibert O, Gidrol X, Mata X, Vaiman A, Guérin G.Recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis (RER) is frequently observed in race horses like trotters. Some predisposing genetic factors have been described in epidemiological studies. However, the exact aetiology is still unknown. A calcium homeostasis disruption was suspected in previous experimental studies, and we suggested that a transcriptome analysis of RER muscles would be a possible way to investigate the pathway disorder. The purpose of this study was to compare the gene expression profile of RER vs. control muscles in the French Trotter to determine any metabolic or structural disruption. T...
Cordes DO, Perry BD, Rikihisa Y, Chickering WR.Potomac horse fever was reproduced in 15 ponies by transfusion of whole blood originally from two natural cases and subsequently from ponies infected by the transfusions. Incubation periods varied from 9 to 15 days. Affected ponies developed varying degrees of fever, diarrhea, anorexia, depression, and leukopenia. Eleven affected ponies were killed, three died in the acute phase of the disease, and one did not show clinical signs. The most consistent post-mortem findings were fluid contents in the cecum and large colon, and areas of hyperemia (of inconstant degree and distribution) in mucosae ...
Vatistas NJ, Sifferman RL, Holste J, Cox JL, Pinalto G, Schultz KT.Gastric ulceration is a prevalent condition of racehorses. A number of models of gastric ulceration have been described, but none mimic the conditions of a horse in training. The objectives of this study were to determine whether gastric ulcers could be induced and maintained in a group of horses in simulated race training. In addition, serum cortisol was measured on a weekly basis to investigate the possibility that stress may be important in the pathogenesis of gastric ulceration. Thirty horses used in the trial were fed Bermuda grass hay and 6 kg of a concentrate diet, and exercised 6 days/...
Venter GJ, Paweska JT.Previously reported virus recovery rates from Culicoides (Avaritia) imicola Kieffer and Culicoides (Avaritia) bolitinos Meiswinkel (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) orally infected with vaccine strain of African horse sickness virus serotype 7 (AHSV-7) were compared with results obtained from concurrently conducted oral infections with five recent AHSV-7 isolates from naturally infected horses from various localities in South Africa. Culicoides were fed sheep bloods spiked with 10(7.6) TCID(50)/mL of a live-attenuated vaccine strain AHSV-7, and with five field isolates in which virus titre in the blo...
Salim B, Bakheit MA, Sugimoto C.Equine trypanosomosis (ET) is a protozoan disease affecting equines in many parts of the world. We examined 509 samples collected from geographically distinct regions in eastern, central and western Sudan to estimate the endemicity of ET using the generic ITS1-PCR diagnostic methods. Results revealed that horses and donkeys were infected by Trypanosoma brucei subgroup, Trypanosoma vivax, Trypanosoma simiae and Trypanosoma congolense. The prevalence of Trypanosoma spp. was higher in horses (12.7%, n=393) than in donkeys (3.4%, n=116). The highest prevalence was observed in South Darfur State (1...
Klewitz J, Struebing C, Rohn K, Goergens A, Martinsson G, Orgies F, Probst J, Hollinshead F, Bollwein H, Sieme H.Color Doppler sonography has become routine for the evaluation of high-risk pregnancies in human medicine. Previous studies documenting uterine blood flow parameters in the pregnant mare have found a decrease in peripheral blood flow resistance in the first pregnancy weeks and an increase in uterine blood flow, especially in the last trimester of pregnancy. However, these studies involved only a small number of mares. No naturally occurring pregnancy abnormalities occurred that would allow blood flow changes to be retrospectively examined and analyzed. The objective of the present study was to...
Love CC, Kenney RM.The relationship between fertility and susceptibility of sperm DNA to denaturation was determined in a group of 84 actively breeding, clinically fertile stallions. Susceptibility of DNA to denaturation was determined using the sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA). The SCSA measures, mean of alpha-t (mean alpha t), standard deviation of alpha-t (SD alpha t), and the COMP of alpha-t (cells outside the main population)] were significantly correlated with the percentage seasonal pregnancy rate (SPR; mean alpha t, r = -0.24, P < or = 0.05; % COMP alpha t, r = -0.27, P < or = 0.05); percentage pre...
Prescott JF, Gannon VP, Kittler G, Hlywka G.Results are presented of antimicrobial disc diffusion susceptibility testing on commonly isolated bacterial pathogens made at the Ontario Veterinary College Diagnostic Bacteriology Laboratory in 1981 and 1982. Nearly 2 000 isolates from horses, cattle, dogs and cats were tested. Comparison of resistance in the same bacterial species isolated from different animal species showed significant differences between some of the same antibiotics.
Choi YK, Kang MS, Yoo HS, Lee DY, Lee HC, Kim DY.Acute hemorrhagic myonecrosis accompanied by severe inter- and intrafascicular edema and hemorrhage of the right gluteal area was diagnosed in a 13-year-old male thoroughbred horse. Once the muscular and fascicular changes were subsided, the horse then developed acute respiratory problem. Histologically, the lung had diffuse severe hemorrhage with mild neutrophilic infiltration. The cause of death was acute respiratory failure that is believed to occur secondary to toxaemic event. Alpha and beta2 toxin secreting Clostiridum perfringens type A was isolated from the muscle and lung. The diagnosi...
Dowdall SM, Proudman CJ, Klei TR, Mair T, Matthews JB.Cyathostomins are the most common parasitic nematodes of horses. Larval stages, which inhabit the intestinal wall, are particularly pathogenic and can cause severe colitis and colic. Despite their clinical importance, diagnostic techniques for the prepatent stages do not exist. A method that could estimate mucosal infection intensity would have a major impact on the control and diagnosis of cyathostominosis. Here, serum IgG(T) responses to two larval antigen complexes of 25 and 20 kDa were quantified in horses with experimental infections, natural infections and in horses that presented with c...
