Disease management in horses encompasses the strategies and practices employed to prevent, control, and treat diseases affecting equine populations. This field involves understanding the etiology, transmission, and clinical presentation of various equine diseases, as well as implementing biosecurity measures and therapeutic interventions. Common diseases in horses include equine influenza, strangles, and equine herpesvirus. Effective disease management relies on accurate diagnosis, vaccination protocols, and the use of antimicrobials and other treatments. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the methodologies, challenges, and advancements in managing diseases in equine health.
Acosta-Jamett G, Cleaveland S, Cunningham AA, Bronsvoort BM, Craig PS.Cyst echinococcosis (CE) is one of the most important zoonosis in Chile, where studies have focussed mainly in moist southern regions. The present study was conducted to determine the prevalence of cystic echinococcosis (CE) in livestock and humans in the semiarid Coquimbo region in north-central Chile. A review of all surgical cases of CE in humans reported in the Elqui, Limarí and Choapa provinces in Coquimbo region for the period comprising 1995-2006 was obtained. In addition, a retrospective study of CE covering condemnation records from slaughterhouses of these provinces from the same pe...
Penell JC, Bonnett BN, Pringle J, Egenvall A.Computerized diagnostic information offers potential for epidemiological research; however data accuracy must be addressed. The principal aim of this study was to evaluate the completeness and correctness of diagnostic information in a computerized equine clinical database compared to corresponding hand written veterinary clinical records, used as gold standard, and to assess factors related to correctness. Further, the aim was to investigate completeness (epidemiologic sensitivity), correctness (positive predictive value), specificity and prevalence for diagnoses for four body systems and cor...
Castagnetti C, Pirrone A, Mariella J, Mari G.The use of blood lactate concentration as an indicator of prognosis and disease severity has become a common practice in equine medicine, especially with the validation of handheld analyzers. However, few authors described lactate concentration in critically ill foals, and there are no published studies about the use of handheld analyzers in neonatal foals. In this study, for the first time in the equine neonate, we validated the Lactate Scout analyzer, both in healthy and in critically ill foals. The study also describes the normal range for blood lactate in 26 healthy neonatal foals during t...
Salim B, Bakheit MA, Kamau J, Nakamura I, Sugimoto C.This is a molecular epidemiological investigation on Theileria equi, a causative agent of equine piroplasmosis. Blood samples were collected from 127 horses from different geographical locations in Sudan. The small subunit of rRNA gene (18S; ~1,600 bp) was amplified from 20 positive field samples and subsequently subjected to direct sequencing and analysis to reveal possible strain differences and the presence of a novel species or genotypes. Sequences were compared with published sequences mainly from South African and Spanish isolates. Eleven distinct T. equi sequences within 18S rRNA gene w...
Lesser FR, Cowles RR.In this article, the author discusses the design of an equine ambulatory practice. He suggests a more systematic approach to the design of an ambulatory practice that should answer the needs of group and solo practices. Today's practitioners must actively manage their practices so that their resources can be leveraged in such a fashion that a return can be realized on their capital investment and the hours spent in practice.
Moagabo KT, Monyame KB, Baipoledi EK, Letshwenyo M, Mapitse N, Hyera JM.A longitudinal study of animal and human rabies covering 18 years from 1989 to 2006 was retrospectively conducted in order to highlight the epidemiological features and trends of the disease in Botswana. Over the 18-year period, a total of 4 306 brain specimens collected from various species of animals including human beings with clinical signs consistent with rabies were submitted to the National Veterinary Laboratory in Gaborone for confirmatory diagnosis. Of the samples submitted, 2419 cases were found to be positive for lyssavirus antigen; this presents an overall prevalence rate of 56.18 ...
Wilsher S, Clutton-Brock A, Allen WR.A total of 78 day 10 horse embryos were transferred non-surgically to recipient mares that had ovulated 9, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 or 1 day after (negative asynchrony), on the same day (synchronous), or 2 or 4 days before (positive asynchrony) the donor (n=6 or 8 mares per group). Pregnancy rates between 100% (6/6) and 63% (5/8) were seen in recipient mares that were between +2 and -6 days asynchronous. Embryo survival to the heartbeat stage declined in recipients that were -7 days asynchronous and no embryos survived in recipients that were -9 days asynchronous. Irrespective of uterine asynchrony, c...
Pearson W, Lindinger M.Nutraceuticals are increasingly applied to the management of equine arthritis and joint disease, particularly those based upon glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate. While the first report of using glucosamine in horses appeared more than 25 years ago, it was not until 1992 that isolated studies began to be reported. Since that time, 15 in vivo papers have been published in the equine literature, usually on products already commercially available and often seeking evidence for efficacy. These studies demonstrate an encouraging trend to manufacturers of these products investing in research, but ...
Bonnett BN, Egenvall A.From 1995 to the present Agria Animal Insurance, Sweden (Agria Djurförsäkring, Stockholm, Sweden) has provided data on both health care and life insurance claims for descriptive and analytical research. From these data we have published extensively on insured dogs and horses and have recently submitted a study on cat mortality. Over the periods studied most extensively (1995-2002 for dogs, 1997-2004 for horses and 1999-2006 for cats), Agria has insured approximately 200,000 dogs, 100,000 horses and up to 200,000 cats per year. Estimates based on formal research or market surveys suggest that...
Lind EO, Christensson D.In the last few years stud farms have experienced increasing problems with Parascaris equorum infections in foals despite intensive deworming programs. This has led to the question as to whether the anthelmintic drugs used against this parasite are failing. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of ivermectin, fenbendazole and pyrantel on the faecal output of ascarid eggs of foals. Methods: A Faecal Egg Count Reduction Test (FECRT) was performed on nine large studs in Sweden. Anthelmintic drugs were given orally and faecal samples were examined for ascarid eggs on the day of deworming an...
Spokes PJ, Marich AJ, Musto JA, Ward KA, Craig AT, McAnulty JM.An outbreak of equine influenza occurred in New South Wales in 2007. In addition to the local spread of the disease between bordering properties, windborne spread over several kilometres had been postulated as a possible method of transmission in this outbreak. This study aimed to describe potential modes of transmission for a property infected with equine influenza where no apparent epidemiological links to other infected properties were reported. Methods: A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to owners of affected properties. The questionnaire collected detailed transmission-risk ...
Brosnahan MM, Damiani A, van de Walle G, Erb H, Perkins GA, Osterrieder N.Available vaccines fail to induce lasting and protective immunity to equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) associated diseases. RNA interference is a novel approach showing promise for therapeutic use in outbreak situations. This study examined the effect of small interfering RNA (siRNA) on clinical signs as well as the presence of live virus and viral DNA in nasal secretions and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in horses experimentally infected with EHV-1. siRNA targeting two EHV-1 genes (glycoprotein B and the origin binding protein) was administered 12h before and 12h after intranasal infe...
Arrigo NC, Adams AP, Weaver SC.The eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) complex consists of four distinct genetic lineages: one that circulates in North America (NA EEEV) and the Caribbean and three that circulate in Central and South America (SA EEEV). Differences in their geographic, pathogenic, and epidemiologic profiles prompted evaluation of their genetic diversity and evolutionary histories. The structural polyprotein open reading frames of all available SA EEEV and recent NA EEEV isolates were sequenced and used in evolutionary and phylogenetic analyses. The nucleotide substitution rate per year for SA EEEV (1.2 x 10(-4...
Ryu SH, Koo HC, Park YK, Kim JM, Jung WK, Davis WC, Park YH, Lee CW.Equine respiratory disease is a common cause of poor performance and training interruptions. The higher incidence rate of infectious upper respiratory disease (IURD) in thoroughbred racehorses at the Seoul Race Park coincided with the frequent stabling season, shorter stabling periods, and younger ages in this study. Incidence rates were also correlated with significantly lower proportions of cells expressing MHC class II-, CD2 antigen-, CD4+- or CD8+-T lymphocyte-, and B lymphocyte in IURD patients compared with healthy control groups in the summer and fall and in 2-and-3-year-old groups. The...
Tamarit A, Gutierrez C, Arroyo R, Jimenez V, Zagalá G, Bosch I, Sirvent J, Alberola J, Alonso I, Caballero C.An outbreak of Trypanosoma evansi infection that occurred in mainland Spain is described. The outbreak occurred on an equine and camel farm to which dromedary camels from an infected area of the Canary Islands had recently been introduced. One of these camels developed clinical signs and T. evansi was discovered in a blood smear examination. The herd was evaluated in order to determine the extent of the disease. The results showed that 76% of the camels, 35% of the donkeys and 2% of the horses were affected. The animals were isolated and treated using Cymelarsan((R)) (0.5mg/kg). After treatmen...
Gilger BC, Brooks DE.This first IEOC symposium met its goals of gathering a group of leading equine ophthalmology clinicians and researchers to identify the challenges of the field. To facilitate collaboration, notes from round-table discussions, including the ideas and plans that were discussed are being complied and will be distributed to the attendees. Development of an IEOC membership organisation and website was discussed and supported by the group in an effort further to advance the science of equine ophthalmology. To present results from the collaborations made at this first IEOC meeting, an IEOC mini-sympo...
Grinberg A, Pomroy WE, Carslake HB, Shi Y, Gibson IR, Drayton BM.To assess the occurrence of Cryptosporidium oocysts in faecal specimens from foals, and investigate an outbreak of neonatal cryptosporidiosis in foals revealed in the course of the study. Methods: Faecal specimens from foals received by a diagnostic veterinary laboratory in New Zealand between 2006 and 2007 were submitted to Massey University and tested microscopically for the presence of Cryptosporidium oocysts. The Cryptosporidium isolates in the oocyst-positive specimens were genetically identified to species level. In addition, specimen submission data from the participating laboratory for...
Sergeant ES, Kirkland PD, Cowled BD.During the Australian epidemic of equine influenza in 2007, tens of thousands of horses were infected. From the resulting field data, 475 known infected and 1323 uninfected horses were identified to allow a post outbreak evaluation of the performance of the commonly used bELISA for influenza A under field conditions. A variety of techniques, such as ROC plots, area under the curve and hypothesis testing were used to assess the overall performance of the test. The test was deemed to be accurate (area under curve=0.993+/-0.003 standard error) and significantly informative (z=-32.0; p or =50) wer...
Corning S.The small strongyles of horses, also known as cyathostomins, are considered the most prevalent and pathogenic parasites of horses today. The clinical syndrome of larval cyathostominosis which occurs as a result of mass emergence of inhibited stages has a high fatality rate despite the best standard of care given to affected horses. Management of the challenge level of cyathostomins to prevent the syndrome is preferable. Many different management programmes have been tried over the past two decades, with mixed success. Programmes have relied heavily on repeated use of anthelmintic treatments th...
Nielsen MK.Given the increasing levels of anthelmintic resistance in equine parasites, parasitologists now recommend traditional treatment approaches to be abandoned and replaced by more sustainable strategies. It is of crucial importance to facilitate veterinary involvement to ensure that treatment decisions are based on parasitic knowledge. Despite recommendations given for the past two decades, strategies based on the selective therapy principle have not yet been implemented on a larger scale in equine establishments. In contrast, treatment regimens appear to be derived from recommendations originally...
Cobb R, Boeckh A.This article reviews the current knowledge of the use of moxidectin (MOX) in horses, including its mode of action, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties, efficacy, safety and resistance profile.Moxidectin is a second generation macrocyclic lactone (ML) with potent endectocide activity. It is used for parasite control in horses in an oral gel formulation. The principal mode of action of MOX and of other MLs is binding to gamma-aminobutyric (GABA) and glutamate-gated chloride channels. Moxidectin is different from other MLs in that it is a poor substrate for P-glycoproteins (P-gps) and ...
Spokes PJ, Marich AJ, Musto JA, Ward KA, Craig AT, McAnulty JM.An outbreak of equine influenza occurred in New South Wales in 2007. In addition to the local spread of the disease between bordering properties, windborne spread over several kilometres had been postulated as a possible method of transmission in this outbreak. This study aimed to describe potential modes of transmission for a property infected with equine influenza where no apparent epidemiological links to other infected properties were reported. Methods: A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to owners of affected properties. The questionnaire collected detailed transmission-risk ...
Becher AM, Pfister K.In recent years more and more cases of anthelmintic resistant equine strongyles were reported. The latest developments are cases of resistance against macrocyclic lactones. In order to delay this process less anthelmintics and only those which have been previously tested for their efficacy on each individual farm should be used. During the grazing season 2008 faecal samples of 281 horses and 5 donkeys from 26 farms were analysed in the area of Salzburg. To 164 of these horses selective anthelmintic treatment was implemented. Every four weeks faecal samples from the 164 horses were quantitative...
Ricketts SW.The clinician may use the clinical pathology laboratory as a valuable aid to diagnosis and management, for the assessment of response to treatment, and in preventive medicine programs. Each "link in the chain," that is, sample selection, collection, handling, analysis, result reporting, and interpretation must be carefully and efficiently managed, using an informed combination of art and science, to provide a useful endpoint. This general introduction precedes more specific and detailed articles.
Güleğen E, Cirak VY.Lice infestations of horses occur mainly during winter months and are characterized by severe pruritus and an unkempt coat. Two lice have been described for equines namely Bovicola (Damalinia) equi and Haemotopinus asini. There is a scarcity of data on the occurrence and prevalence rates of these horse pathogens in Turkey. This paper reports a thoroughbred farm, in which two horses were found to be infested with B. equi. The horses were treated with propoxur and no lice or nymphs could be found after treatment for10 days.
Maniego J, Giles O, Hincks P, Stewart G, Proudman C, Ryder E.We present here the use of targeted, long-read sequencing of the myostatin (MSTN) gene as a model to detect potential gene editing events in Thoroughbred horses. MSTN is a negative regulator of muscle development, making the gene a prime candidate target for gene doping. By sequencing the complete gene in one PCR product, we can catalogue all mutations without the need to produce short-fragment libraries. A panel of reference material fragments with defined mutations was constructed and successfully sequenced by both Oxford Nanopore and Illumina-based methods, showing that gene doping editing ...
Sertich PL.The events surrounding parturition are well orchestrated, and normal delivery of a foal is an explosive, rapidly occurring event. Any aberration may jeopardize the pregnancy and cause clinical complications. This article discusses problems associated with the periparturient period that require immediate attention.
Ducharme NG, Pascoe PJ, Lumsden JH, Ducharme GR.In order to determine which variables are useful in identifying horses with abdominal pain requiring surgery, data were analysed from 219 horses presented at one veterinary teaching hospital. Using multiple stepwise discriminant analysis with a recursive partitioning algorithm, we obtained a decision tree that identifies surgical and non-surgical patients. The prevalence of surgical patients was 79 per cent in this population. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of this decision tree were 99 per cent, 55 per cent, 90 per cent and 99 per cent respectively. ...
Curling A.Equine recurrent uveitis has traditionally been treated with medical management to reduce ocular inflammation and control pain during a single episode. Newer management methods include surgical options such as cyclosporine implantation and vitrectomy. These methods were developed not only to control inflammation but also to eliminate the underlying cause of uveitis in order to prevent recurrence.
McKenzie EC.Polyuria and polydipsia provide a diagnostic challenge for the equine clinician. This article describes the various known causes of polyuria and polydipsia in horses and provides a description of a systematic diagnostic approach for assessing horses with polyuria and polydipsia to delineate the underlying cause. Treatment and management strategies for addressing polyuria and polydipsia in horses are also described.
Oesch S, Kaiser-Thom S, Vidondo B, Gerber V.Equine pastern dermatitis has a high prevalence in the equine population, especially in draft breeds. This skin condition is difficult to treat, and it is suspected that owners often decide on a treatment without consulting a veterinarian. The objectives of this study were to describe owner-reported clinical signs, severity, and reasons to consult a veterinarian. Moreover, we inquired about preventive measures and treatments, both instituted by owners without previous consultation or prescribed by their veterinarians. A total of 123 horses (owners recruited over social media) were included in ...
Feder HM, Nelson RS, Cartter ML, Sadre I.A survey was performed to identify people who were exposed to a rabid pony and determine whether or not they received rabies postexposure prophylaxis (PEP). Sixty-one visitors who came in contact with the rabid pony were identified. These visitors heard about the rabid pony via the news media. Forty-five visitors were exposed during the 2 weeks before the pony died. Thirty-two of these 45 visitors received PEP. Thirty-one visitors had or may have had saliva contact to an open wound or mucosa and all 31 received PEP. Fourteen visitors had no saliva contact to a wound or mucosa and one received ...
Arnold CE, Chaffin MK, Rush BR.Cystic hematomas were diagnosed in 3 neonatal foals. In all 3 foals, cystic hematomas resulted from umbilical trauma or thrombocytopenia. Findings in these foals suggest that cystic hematoma should be included in the differential diagnosis of hematuria in neonatal foals. Management of cystic hematomas includes both medical and surgical options.
Atwill ER, Mohammed HO.To determine whether preferentially vaccinated horses were at risk for exposure to Ehrlichia risticii, whether horses with equine monocytic ehrlichiosis (EME) were likely to have been nonvaccinated, and whether clinical severity and financial costs associated with care and treatment of EME were less for vaccinated horses with EME than for nonvaccinated horses with EME. Methods: Cross-sectional and case-control studies. Methods: Information on usage of E risticii bacterins to control EME was collected for 2,587 horses located on 511 farms throughout New York. Each horse was tested for serum ant...
Reef VB.Cardiac disease in the equine neonate occurs infrequently. Murmurs are often heard in foals and are not considered significant unless they persist beyond 4 days of age. Congenital cardiac defects are the most common form of primary cardiac disease in the foal, with ventricular septal defects occurring most frequently. Other neonatal foal diseases such as ruptured bladders, white muscle disease, neonatal respiratory distress syndrome, and septicemia have secondary cardiac involvement.
Eight mares with third-degree rectovestibular lacerations were treated by a two-stage surgical technique. The rectovestibular shelf was corrected with three parallel 'circular' continuous suture rows distributed along the longitudinal axis of the vagina, and the perineal body was reconstructed with three divergent simple continuous rows. Primary healing of the first-stage surgery occurred in all the mares. Seven of the mares completed the two-stage surgery and primary healing occurred in all of them. One of them returned to endurance racing competition and one was lost to follow-up. The other ...
Argo CM.Leisure animals now comprise the majority of working horses in industrialized nations; a shift that has decreased workloads yet improved veterinary care and lifetime health. Although many horses now progress well into their 20s without any requirement for dietary modification, age-related changes are insidious, and older animals benefit from regular veterinary monitoring to identify, address, and ameliorate the inevitable onset of age-related "disease." Basal metabolic rate decreases with age; older animals expend less energy on controlled exercise, and there can be an increased propensity tow...