Disease treatment in horses encompasses a range of medical interventions and management strategies aimed at addressing various health conditions affecting equine species. These treatments can include pharmacological approaches, such as the administration of antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs, and antiparasitic medications, as well as non-pharmacological methods like physical therapy, dietary adjustments, and surgical procedures. The selection of appropriate treatments depends on the specific disease, its severity, and the individual needs of the horse. This topic brings together peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the efficacy, safety, and advancements in therapeutic options for equine diseases, providing insights into best practices and emerging trends in equine veterinary medicine.
Foley JE, Norris CR, Jang SS.We reviewed 14 cases of paecilomycosis in a tertiary care veterinary hospital and all reports of the disease in the veterinary literature. Paecilomycosis is a rare disease primarily of dogs, horses, reptiles, and humans. Clinical manifestations in veterinary patients vary but include disseminated disease and diskospondylitis, particularly in dogs: pneumonia in dogs, horses, and reptiles; keratitis in horses; and miscellaneous local infections. It is important to have an appropriate index of suspicion because the diagnosis can be difficult, particularly in localized disease where it is difficul...
Berthoud H, Frey J, Kuhnert P.Actinobacillus equuli, a member of the family Pasteurellaceae is the etiologic agent of a frequently lethal septicemia in neonatal foals as well as other more chronic diseases like arthritis, pleuritis, pneumonia or peritonitis. It may also be isolated from the oral cavity of healthy horses. Hemolytic isolates of A. equuli are known but so far no virulence determinants have been described for this bacterial species. By screening hemolytic A. equuli strains with specific gene probes, a hemolysin, designated Aqx (A. equuli RTX (repeats in the structural toxin)) was identified. This hemolysin was...
Cohen ND, Peck KE, Smith SA, Ray AC.The distribution of specific gravity values for 2,599 urine samples collected from racing Thoroughbred horses that were known to have received furosemide prior to racing was compared with that for 1,669 urine samples from racing Thoroughbred horses that reportedly had not received furosemide. Values of specific gravity for furosemide-treated horses were significantly lower (P < 0.001) than those for horses that had not received furosemide, and the proportion of horses with urine specific gravity either <1.010 or <1.012 was significantly greater (P < 0.001) among the furosemide-trea...
Craigo JK, Leroux C, Howe L, Steckbeck JD, Cook SJ, Issel CJ, Montelaro RC.The genetic variation of equine infectious anaemia virus (EIAV) clearly affects the antigenic properties of the viral envelope; however, effects on immunogenicity remain undefined, although widely assumed. Here, the immunogenicity is reported of a novel, neutralization-resistant, pony-isolate envelope EIAV(PV564DeltaPND) that contains a 14-residue deletion in the designated principal neutralizing domain (PND) of the gp90 protein. Two ponies inoculated with a chimeric virus, EIAV(DeltaPND), containing the EIAV(PV564DeltaPND) envelope in a reference provirus strain, remained asymptomatic through...
Freeman SL, Bowen IM, Bettschart-Wolfensberger R, Alibhai HI, England GC.The cardiovascular effects of romifidine, an alpha-2 adrenoreceptor agonist, were investigated in six horses using two doses (80 and 120 microg kg(-1)) in a cross-over study design. Cardiac index and mixed venous oxygenation were significantly decreased at 15 and 30 minutes after both doses of romifidine. Systemic vascular resistance was significantly increased with romifidine (120 microg kg(-1)). Arterial blood pressure increased initially and then gradually decreased; the doses of decrease was significant at 90 and 120 minutes with romifidine 80 and 120 microg kg(-1). There were minimal diff...
Gray AW, Davies ME, Jeffcott LB.Equine osteoclast-like cells (OCLs) were generated from the bone marrow (BM) of two ponies and one horse in the presence of RANKL, the receptor activator of NF kappa B ligand and macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF). The phenotype of these cells was confirmed by demonstration of characteristics typical of osteoclasts (OCs) including: the expression of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP), the vitronectin receptor (VNR) and the calcitonin receptor (CTR), the demonstration of responsiveness to calcitonin (CT) and the ability to form resorption lacunae on ivory slices and calcium ph...
Dursun E, Dursun N, Alican D.In this study our aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of Ankle-Foot Orthoses (AFOs) on gait function in patients with spastic cerebral palsy for whom orthoses were indicated to control dynamic equines deformity. Methods: Twenty-four spastic cerebral palsied patients with dynamic equines deformity were included in the study. Videotape recordings were performed to each patient on the same day with barefoot and AFOs. Temporal distance factors including velocity, cadence, stride length, stride width and Clinical Gait Assessment Score (CGAS) were compared across two conditions. Results: The use o...
Matthews S, Dart AJ, Reid SW, Dowling BA, Hodgson DR.To determine the predictive values, sensitivity and specificity of abdominal fluid variables associated with the need for surgery in horses with an acute abdominal crisis. Methods: Retrospective study. Methods: Two-hundred and thirty-six horses examined for signs of abdominal pain between January 1993 and June 1999. Methods: Breed, age and gender of the horse and colour, total protein concentration and total nucleated cell count of an abdominal fluid sample were recorded. Colour of the abdominal fluid was classified as normal if it was yellow and transparent. Turbid fluid or fluid that was ser...
Alexander GR, Gibson KT.Two mares presented with life-threatening rectal tears were successfully treated with intensive medical management. Although surgery has been regarded as mandatory for grade 3 or 4 rectal tears in the past, recent reports have indicated the value of medical management alone. The case reports presented in this article detail the use of antibiotics, flunixin meglumine, laxative diets and faecal softeners in the medical management of two mares presented with grade 3 rectal tears.
Steinman A, Sutton GA, Lichawski D, Johnston DE.We describe a case of osteoma in the frontal and maxillary sinuses of a 3-year-old Arabian mare, presented due to an inspiratory dyspnoea. The mare underwent two surgical procedures in order to excise the tumour. Twelve months after admission the mare was healthy with no signs of respiratory abnormalities. Sinus radiographs and endoscopy repeated at that time revealed some regrowth of the tumour in the maxillary sinus, however, twenty-two months following surgery the mare did not show clinical signs of upper airway disease.
Kirkham LE, Vasey JR.An Anglo-Arab foal with bilateral postprandial nasal discharge was diagnosed as having a full-length defect of the soft palate. Surgical repair was attempted using a combination of two surgical approaches. Initially a mandibular symphysiotomy approach was used. The posterior portion of the defect did not heal adequately, so a ventral laryngotomy, bisecting the body of the thyroid cartilage and extending to a pharyngotomy approach, was performed 5 months later. The foal has since matured fully despite a slight unilateral nasal discharge. This case report demonstrates that these two surgical app...
Hoff TK, Hood DM, Wagner IP.To evaluate the clinical efficacy of topically administered glyceryl trinitrate (GTN) for inducing digital submural vasodilation in clinically normal horses. Methods: 7 adult horses without foot abnormalities. Methods: A concurrent-control crossover design was used to determine whether topical application of GTN ointment for prevention or treatment of laminitis would result in a detectable increase in digital perfusion. Heat-acclimated horses instumented for detection of wall surface temperature (HWST), mean systemic pressure, and heart rate were used. Horses were exposed to cold to induce dig...
Bentley AP, Barton MH, Lee MD, Norton NA, Moore JN.To determine which antimicrobials that are used to treat neonatal foals with septicemia attributable to Escherichia coli will minimize endotoxin release from bacteria and subsequent activity of inflammatory mediators while maintaining bactericidal efficacy. Methods: Blood samples from 10 healthy foals. Methods: Escherichia coli isolates A and B were isolated from 2 septicemic foals, and minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were determined for 9 antimicrobials. Five of these antimicrobials were tested in vitro at 2 and 20 times their respective MIC. Whole blood or mononuclear cells grown in ...
Lescun TB, Adams SB, Wu CC, Bill RP, Van Sickle DC.To determine the effects of a continuous intra-articular infusion of gentamicin on the synovial membrane and articular cartilage in the tarsocrural joint of horses. Methods: 6 healthy adult horses. Methods: A balloon infusion system attached to a catheter placed in the plantarolateral pouch of both tarsocrural joints in each horse was used for continuous gentamicin solution (GM) or balanced electrolyte solution (BES) delivery for 5 days. Cartilage and synovial membrane specimens were collected on day 5 from 3 horses and on day 14 from the remaining 3 horses. Both infused joints from each horse...
Kisthardt KK, Schumacher J, Finn-Bodner ST, Carson-Dunkerley S, Williams MA.Case records of 7 horses diagnosed with pyelonephritis were reviewed to determine common features that might aid in diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of this disease. All 7 horses had been admitted for evaluation of hematuria. During cystoscopy of 5 horses, hemorrhage was observed from one or both ureters. Renal biopsy of 1 horse, laboratory analysis of ureteral discharge of 2 horses, and renal ultrasonography of all horses indicated that pyelonephritis was the cause of hemorrhage. Sonographic renal changes included decreased length, increased echogenicity, abnormal outline, loss of corticom...
Davis JL, Gardner SY, Jones SL, Schwabenton BA, Papich MG.The properties of azithromycin suggest that it may be an alternative to erythromycin for treatment of Rhodococcus equi pneumonia in foals. To investigate this possibility, the disposition of azithromycin in plasma, polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN), and alveolar cells was examined after a single administration in foals. Azithromycin suspension was administered orally (p.o.) at a dose of 10 mg/kg to five healthy 2-3-month-old foals. Two weeks later, azithromycin for injection was administered by intravenous (i.v.) infusion at a dose of 5 mg/kg to the same foals. Plasma samples were collected a...
Armstrong S, Lees P.Chondrocytes and synoviocytes harvested from the joints of healthy horses were maintained in tissue culture. Production of the cytokines interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) in response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and the effects of addition of carprofen (racemate and R and S enantiomers) were determined. Lipopolysaccharide failed to stimulate TNF-alpha activity in both cell types but concentrations of IL-1 and IL-6 were both increased in a concentration and time-related manner. Both carprofen enantiomers and the racemic mixture attenuated th...
Erkert RS, Macallister CG.Isoxsuprine hydrochloride has been suggested for use in horses for treatment of navicular syndrome and laminitis. The drug has been shown to be a beta-adrenoreceptor antagonist with beta-adrenoreceptor agonistic properties, with both characteristics contributing to vasodilation and uterine relaxation. In addition, the drug is capable of decreasing blood viscosity and platelet aggregation. Studies have shown i.v. isoxsuprine to have a plasma half-life of <3 h with a large apparent volume of distribution. Cardiovascular effects resolve rapidly following i.v. administration, but are absent wit...
Kidd JA, Slone DE.The medical records of 80 horses treated for left laryngeal hemiplegia by prosthetic laryngoplasty, ventriculectomy and vocal cordectomy were examined, first to compare the subjective and objective success rates for groups of horses of different ages and used for different purposes, and secondly, to compare the efficacy of including vocal cordectomy in the surgical protocol with published success rates for laryngoplasty and ventriculectomy alone. Subjectively, 70 per cent of the horses were said to have had a successful surgical outcome. The success rate for thoroughbred racehorses (66 per cen...
Judy CE, Galuppo LD.To describe a technique for endoscope-assisted disruption and removal of urinary calculi using a holmium:YAG laser in sedated, standing horses. Methods: Retrospective study. Methods: Six horses with urinary calculi. Methods: A holmium:YAG laser was used to disrupt naturally occurring urinary calculi in horses (4 geldings, 1 stallion, 1 mare). Ischial urethrotomy was performed in male horses to provide a portal for the endoscope and laser fiber. Calculus fragments were removed by a combination of lavage, transendoscopic basket snare removal, forceps, and digital manipulation. Ischial urethrotom...
Elce YA, Richardson DW.To report a technique for, and outcome after, arthroscopic removal of dorsoproximal chip fractures of a proximal phalanx in standing horses. Methods: Retrospective study. Methods: A total of 104 horses, 1 to 13 years of age, with a dorsoproximal chip fracture of a proximal phalanx. Methods: Horses were restrained in standing stocks and sedated with intravenous xylazine, detomidine, or a combination of both drugs. Local analgesia was achieved with 2% mepivacaine administered intra-articularly and by subcutaneous infiltration in a crescent-shaped block dorsal to the fetlock. Sterile drapes were ...
McCauley CT, Hawkins JF, Adams SB, Fessler JF.To determine outcome of horses in which cutaneous masses were removed with a carbon dioxide laser. Methods: Retrospective study. Methods: 32 horses. Methods: Medical records of horses with 1 or more cutaneous masses treated with a carbon dioxide laser were examined. Follow-up information was obtained through telephone interviews with owners and referring veterinarians. Results: Cutaneous masses were classified as sarcoids (15 horses), neoplastic masses other than sarcoids (squamous cell carcinoma [91; fibroma [1]; and melanoma [1]), and nonneoplastic masses (6). Minimum follow-up time was 6 mo...
Sevinga M, Barkema HW, Hesselink JW.The purpose of the present study was to compare serum calcium and magnesium concentrations in mares with or without a retained placenta (RP) and to evaluate treatment of mares with RP with oxytocin versus oxytocin combined with Ca-Mg-borogluconate solution. Blood samples were obtained within 12 h of foaling from Friesian mares with and without an RP (n = 90 and 65, respectively). Serum Ca and Mg concentrations were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. In total, we treated 112 cases of RP in 101 Friesian mares by infusion of either oxytocin dissolved in saline solution or oxytocin d...
Sevinga M, Hesselink JW, Barkema HW.Because the incidence of retained placenta in Friesian mares is estimated to be high, and no reports have been published on the reproductive performance of Friesian mares after retained placenta, we studied postpartum reproductive performance in Friesian brood mares with (n = 54) and without (n = 50) retained placenta. We defined a retained placenta as the failure to expel all fetal membranes within 3 h after the delivery of a foal. We subdivided the group of mares with retained placenta into mares in which the placenta had been removed manually (n = 30) and mares in which it had not (n = 24)....
Traub-Dargatz JL, George JL, Dargatz DA, Morley PS, Southwood LL, Tillotson K.To determine current practices regarding use of antimicrobials in equine patients undergoing surgery because of colic at veterinary teaching hospitals. Methods: Survey. Methods: Diplomates of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons performing equine surgery at veterinary teaching hospitals in the United States. Methods: A Web-based questionnaire was developed, and 85 surgeons were asked to participate. The first part of the survey requested demographic information and information about total number of colic surgeries performed at the hospital, number of colic surgeries performed by the res...
Bunning ML, Bowen RA, Cropp CB, Sullivan KG, Davis BS, Komar N, Godsey MS, Baker D, Hettler DL, Holmes DA, Biggerstaff BJ, Mitchell CJ.A total of 12 horses of different breeds and ages were infected with West Nile virus (WNV) via the bites of infected Aedes albopictus mosquitoes. Half the horses were infected with a viral isolate from the brain of a horse (BC787), and half were infected with an isolate from crow brain (NY99-6625); both were NY99 isolates. Postinfection, uninfected female Ae. albopictus fed on eight of the infected horses. In the first trial, Nt antibody titers reached >1:320, 1:20, 1:160, and 1:80 for horses 1 to 4, respectively. In the second trial, the seven horses with subclinical infections developed Nt a...
Sweeney RW, Reef VB, Reimer JM.Nine horses with (naturally acquired) congestive heart failure were treated with 2.2 micrograms of digoxin/kg of body weight by the IV route, followed by 11 micrograms/kg administered orally every 12 hours thereafter. Furosemide was administered IV concurrently with IV administered digoxin every 12 hours. Serum concentration of digoxin was measured after the first (IV) and seventh (orally administered) dose. After IV administration, digoxin disposition was described by a 2-compartment model, with a rapid distribution phase (t1/2 alpha = 0.17 hour), followed by a slower elimination phase (beta ...
Busschers E, Epstein KL, Holt DE, Parente EJ.To describe the surgical technique, complications, and outcome after use of extraluminal prostheses in 2 ponies with severe tracheal collapse. Methods: Clinical report. Methods: Ponies (n=2) with severe tracheal collapse. Methods: A ventral median approach was used to expose the trachea from the larynx to the manubrium. Extraluminal, high-density polyethylene, C-shaped prostheses were sutured to the dorsal tracheal membrane and tracheal rings to provide external tracheal support. Results: The surgical approach provided good tracheal access and placement of the rings was uncomplicated. Initial ...
Hoffman CJ, McKenzie HC, Furr MO, Desrochers A.Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis occurs in horses with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). Peripheral resistance to glucocorticoids has not been investigated in horses. Objective: To determine if glucocorticoid receptor (GR) function in horses can be measured using flow cytometry, and to use this information to evaluate HPA axis dynamics. Methods: Eleven healthy adult horses in parts 1 and 2. Ten horses with SIRS and 10 age and sex matched controls in part 3. Methods: Flow cytometry was used to evaluate GR density and binding affinity (BA) in 3 healthy...
Geddes LA.The benchmarks in cardiac pacing are identified, beginning with F. Steiner (1871), who rhythmically stimulated the chloroform-arrested hearts of 3 horses, 1 donkey, 10 dogs, 14 cats, and 8 rabbits. The chloroform-arrested heart in human subjects was paced by T. Greene in the following year (1872) in the UK. In 1882, H. Ziemssen in Germany applied cardiac pacing to a 42-year old woman who had a large defect in the anterior left chest wall subsequent to resection of an enchondroma. Intentional cardiac pacing did not occur until 1932, when A.A. Hyman in the US demonstrated that cardiac pacing cou...
Weaver BM, Walley RV.Eleven out of 12 horses were underventilating while breathing spontaneously during halothane anaesthesia with high arterial carbon dioxide tensions. In addition, large alveolar to arterial oxygen tension gradients were found to be present. Mechanically, controlled ventilation with an intermittent positive pressure of 20-30 cm H2O reduced arterial carbon dioxide levels to normal. The alveolar to arterial oxygen gradients did not increase and in some cases decreased. These (A - a) Po2 gradients were due mainly to true shunt of the order of 30 per cent and not to ventilation perfusion inequality....
Ponce Gordo F, Cuesta Bandera C.The Spanish sheep and horse strains of Echinococcus granulosus possess several differential characteristics in their metacestode stage. Cysts from sheep vary widely in size and fertility, but they usually have a thin cyst wall and, when fertile, a whitish hydatid sand formed by brood capsules and protoscoleces. Two types of infections have been observed in horses: one resembling that of sheep, caused by small, non-fertile cysts with a thin wall, and a second type caused by medium to large, always fertile cysts with a thick wall. In this latter case, hydatid sand is always dark brown in color a...
Boyle AG, Magdesian KG, Ruby RE.To assess data regarding clinical features, clinicopathologic and blood gas variables, and outcome from horse and mule foals with confirmed neonatal isoerythrolysis (NI). Methods: Retrospective case series. Methods: 17 horse and 1 mule foals. Methods: Medical records of foals (< 14 days old) with NI were reviewed. Information collected included signalment; clinical examination findings; results of hematologic, serum and plasma biochemical, and venous blood gas analyses and urinalysis; treatments; and outcome. Results: Data from 17 horse foals and 1 mule foal with NI (mean age, 71 hours) were e...
Ramzan PH.Removal of cheek teeth in all but the aged horse or pony is a serious undertaking with potentially deleterious sequellae. Rigid endoscopy permits detailed examination of the oral cavity and erupted dental tissues and has the potential to assist in the correct identification of the diseased tooth. Objective: To document oral endoscopic findings associated with infected equine cheek teeth in cases without gross oral pathological changes and thereby determine the usefulness of rigid oral endoscopy as an aid to diagnosis of such infections. Methods: Records of all cases of equine cheek tooth remov...
Roger T, Bardon T, Ruckebusch Y.The electrical and mechanical activity of the large intestine and its response to administration of opiate mu and kappa agonists were assessed from electrodes and inductograph coils chronically implanted on the cecocolic segment in six ponies given a diet of hay and concentrates. Before the drugs were given, migrating complexes propagating from the cecum into the colon occurred at the rate of 1.5 to 16/hour. During this propulsive activity, the cecocolic sphincter opened and closed allowing the outflow of cecal contents and preventing the backflow of colic contents. Each pony was used as its o...
Qualls HJ, Holbrook TC, Gilliam LL, Njaa BL, Panciera RJ, Pope CN, Payton ME.The efficacy of orally administered therapeutics for the treatment of cantharidin intoxication has not been evaluated in controlled studies. Objective: To develop a model of acute cantharidin intoxication in laboratory rats and to evaluate in this model the relative efficacy of 3 gastrointestinal therapies used to treat equine cantharidin toxicosis. Methods: Sixty-four male Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods: A blinded, randomized, controlled study was performed on rats surgically implanted with telemetry transmitters for evaluating heart rate, locomotor activity, and body temperature. Orogastric ad...
Davis EO, Curran GE, Hetherington WT, Norris DA, Wise GA, Roth IJ, SeaWright AA, Bryden WL.Flood plain staggers, a corynetoxicosis of grazing livestock, occurred on flood plains of the Darling river in northern New South Wales between spring 1990 and autumn 1991, associated with the grazing of Agrostis avenacea with diseased inflorescences. Over this period 1722 cattle, 2466 sheep and 11 horses died on 31 farms. Clinical signs were similar in sheep and cattle, being characterised by intermittent episodes of cerebral convulsion superimposed on varying degrees of cerebellar dysfunction. Pathological changes were variable and non-specific, principally reflecting trauma and the generali...
Gunsalus K, Taylor R, Croix N.To report the clinical history, surgical management, and histologic findings of meibomian gland calcification and osseous metaplasia in a horse. Methods: A 21-year-old Selle Français gelding presented with a 9 months history of blepharitis, blepharospasm, and epiphora affecting the right eye. The horse was diagnosed with meibomianitis and impaction with associated granulomas, but not treated surgically for 6 years. Methods: Physical and ophthalmic examinations, and systemic bloodwork were performed. A diamond burr debridement was performed on a corneal ulceration, and meibomian gland nodul...
Estepa JC, Aguilera-Tejero E, Zafra R, Mayer-Valor R, Rodríguez M, Perez J.An atypical case of severe soft-tissue mineralization in a 3-week-old foal from a herd of Andalusian horses is described. The herd clinical history and the laboratory findings were compatible with a diagnosis of secondary hyperparathyroidism due to a mineral imbalance in the diet (low calcium and high phosphorus intake). Mares showed a marked increase in serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) approximately 10 times normal levels. Serum PTH was marginally elevated in foals. Clinical signs (unthriftiness, painful joints, lameness in one or more limbs, and stiff gait) were more pronounced in foals than ...
Walker HJ, Evans DL, Slocombe RF, Hodgson JL, Hodgson DR.Intrapulmonary blood causes an inflammatory response. Modifying this inflammatory response may be useful in the treatment of exercise induced pulmonary haemorrhage (EIPH). Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of 3 treatments, an oral bronchodilator, inhaled steroid and oral steroid in modifying the cellular response to intrapulmonary blood inoculation. Methods: Experimental design was a randomised block divided into 4 experimental segments of 2 weeks. Eight normal horses were randomly assigned to pairs and treatments. Autologous blood was inoculated into the lungs on 4 occasions over an 8 week ...
Stick JA, Derksen FJ, Scott EA.Cervical esophagostomy for tube feeding was evaluated in 11 ponies. Minor complications responded to supportive therapy in 8 ponies. Two died of complications, and 1 pony had a permanent fistula because of persistent infection. There was a positive correlation between the duration of tube feeding and the event of closure of the esophageal stoma after the tube was removed. There was no difference in the frequency of complications related to duration of tube feeding. When the distal end of the feeding tube was located in the thoracic portion of the esophagus, instead of in the stomach, tubes wer...
Hamor RE, Whelan NC.Corneal ulcers are one of the most common ocular disease presentations in the horse. With the use of correct diagnostic techniques and selection of an appropriate treatment regimen, most cases result in a satisfactory outcome. The eye does not respond well to inflammation, and in complicated ulcers, this should be managed aggressively using systemic NSAIDs with a high priority assigned to removing the infectious agent. Care needs to be taken to avoid topical or systemic corticosteroid use for the treatment of equine ocular disease, however, unless the clinician is completely sure that the corn...
Stefansdottir SB, Jonsdottir S, Kristjansdottir H, Svansson V, Marti E, Torsteinsdottir S.Insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) is a seasonal dermatitis of horses caused by IgE-mediated reactions to bites of Culicoides midges characterized by an imbalance of T-cell subsets. Iceland is free of the causative species but the prevalence of IBH in exported Icelandic horses is especially high. We have shown that intralymphatic (i.l.) vaccination with r-Culicoides allergens in Aluminum hydroxide (alum) and monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA) adjuvants induces a desired Th1/regulatory T-cell response. The aim of this study was to compare i.l. to subcutaneous (s.c.) injection. Twelve healthy Iceland...
Cano A, Galosi CM, Martin Ocampos GP, Ramirez GC, Vera VJ, Villamil LC, Chaparro JG.This paper describes the isolation and characterisation of equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) in Colombia. The virus was isolated from a nasal swab and an aborted foetus of a pregnant mare imported from Argentina, with clinical signs of rhinopneumonitis. The new strain was characterised through culture and morphological, serological and immunocytochemical studies. Polymerase chain reaction and DNA restriction maps revealed an EHV-1 1P genome. This is the first report on the isolation and characterisation of EHV-1 in Colombia.
Muñoz JA, Stephen J, Baptiste KE, Lepage OM.The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, efficacy and complications following lavage and drainage of the lateral compartment (LC) of the equine guttural pouch (GP) using a modified Garm's technique (MGT). In an ex vivo study (study 1), six cadaver heads were examined to assess the anatomical limits of the surgical approach and whether vital structures might be damaged. This was followed by an in vivo study (study 2) in which a lavage/drainage tube was placed for 3 days into each LC of four standing horses using the MGT. In both studies, the procedure offered direct access i...
Zubrod CJ, Schneider RK, Hague BA, Ragle CA, Gavin PR, Kawcak CE.To evaluate the effects of diode laser surgery (LS), surgical drilling (SD), and intraarticular sodium monoiodoacetate (MIA) as methods for fusing the distal intertarsal (DIT) and tarsometatarsal (TMT) joints in horses. Methods: Experimental study. Methods: Adult horses (15) without radiographic signs of osteoarthritis (OA) of the DIT and TMT joints. Methods: Group 1 (n=3) had LS performed bilaterally on DIT and TMT joints; 1 horse was evaluated for 1 week and 2 horses were evaluated for 2 weeks. Group 2 (n=6) had LS on DIT and TMT joints of 1 tarsus and MIA administration into the contralater...
Tokushige H, Araki M, Kusano K, Arima D, Ito H, Yamazaki Y, Urayama S, Kambayashi Y, Tateno O, Ohta M.This study compares clinical characteristics between induction with thiopental/guaifenesin and propofol/ketamine in Thoroughbred racehorses anesthetized with sevoflurane and medetomidine. Clinical records of 214 horses that underwent arthroscopic surgery between 2015 and 2016 were retrospectively retrieved. Horses were premedicated with medetomidine and midazolam to sedate at the adequate level for smooth induction, and then induced with either thiopental (4.0 mg/kg) and guaifenesin (100 mg/kg) in Group TG (n=91) or propofol (1.0 mg/kg) and ketamine (1.0 mg/kg) in Group PK (n=123). Anesthesia ...
Herholz C, Straub R, Moens Y, Busato A.The shape of the volumetric capnogram is modified by airway obstruction, and the evaluation of this deformation could allow an indirect measurement of bronchial patency. The study included 35 horses; five horses without evidence of pulmonary disease (group I) and 30 horses suffering from different degrees of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (groups II-IV). Data of recorded CO2 and volume curves were off-line plotted and statistically analysed using regression analysis. Analyses were performed separately for fractions 25-95% (VTE25-95), 25-50% (VTE25-50) and 50-95% (VTE50-95) of exp...
Wilson DA, Adelstein EH, Keegan KG, Barrett BA, Kutz RR.To determine whether monokines produced by activated rabbit peritoneal macrophages can inhibit development of exuberant granulation tissue formation in distal limb wounds in ponies. Methods: Randomized block. Methods: 5 castrated male ponies, 2 to 6 years old and weighing 140 to 190 kg. Methods: In vitro activity of cell-free rabbit peritoneal macrophage supernatant was determined after incubation of fibroblasts from the flank and the distal portion of limbs of horses and ponies. Tritiated thymidine was then added, and after reincubation, radioactivity was measured. After creation of a 4-cm2, ...
Ford TS, Freeman DE, Ross MW, Richardson DW, Martin BB, Madison JB.The case records of 26 horses with ileocecal intussusception over a 7-year period were reviewed to determine clinical features of the disease and response to treatment. The median age of horses with ileocecal intussusception was 1 year and ranged from 2 weeks to 19 years. There was no apparent gender or breed predisposition to this disease. An acute form of ileocecal intussusception was diagnosed in 19 horses with signs of moderate to severe abdominal pain of less than or equal to 24 hours' duration, and a chronic form was diagnosed in 7 horses with signs of intermittent, mild to moderate abdo...
Ferrante M, Andreeta A, Landoni MF.Diclofenac is a hydrophilic non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug widely used in humans and animals. Previous reports have shown that this compound has low percutaneous absorption in horses. The effect of five penetration enhancers (10% urea, 15% and 20% oleic acid and 5% and 10% d-limonene) on the percutaneous absorption of diclofenac diethylamine through horse skin was evaluated in vitro using Franz-type diffusion cells. All tested penetration enhancers induced a significant increase in diclofenac diethylamine permeation, with limonene showing the highest enhancing effect at the lowest concen...
Hagebock JM, Chieves L, Frerichs WM, Miller CD.The agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) and indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) assays were evaluated as supplemental tests to the complement-fixation (CF) test, the official US importation certification test for dourine in equids. The American stabilate (n = 10 animals) or the Canadian stabilate (n = 6 animals) of Trypanosoma equiperdum cultured in rat blood was administered by catheterization and infusion in the urogenital tract of 16 equids. To assess parasitemia and serologic responses by use of the CF, AGID, and IFA tests, a total of 787 serum and blood samples were obtained from equids befor...
Claffey EF, Brust K, Hackett RP, Fubini S.To report the surgical management and the short- and long-term follow-up of postcastration spermatic cord infection in horses. Methods: Retrospective case series. Methods: Twenty-three client-owned horses. Methods: Medical records (2001-2017) of horses that had been surgically treated for spermatic cord stump infection after castration were reviewed. Time from castration to presentation, diagnostic procedures, surgical complications, bacterial culture and ancillary testing, and survival to discharge were collected. Long-term follow-up was obtained by owner survey when possible. Descriptive sta...
Fielding CL, Magdesian KG.Hypertonic saline solution (7.2%) (HSS) can quickly replace intravascular volume deficits. HSS more recently has been advocated in the treatment of traumatic brain injury, but its use in dehydrated patients remains controversial. Objective: Hypertonic saline solution will show a significant improvement in both clinical and laboratory hydration parameters as compared to isotonic (0.9%) saline solution (ISS). Methods: Endurance horses eliminated from the 2009 Western States 100-mile (220-km) endurance ride and requiring IV fluid therapy were eligible for enrollment in the study. Methods: Twenty-...
Dip RG.Adenosine is a purine nucleoside whose concentration increases during inflammation and hypoxia and the many roles of this molecule are becoming better understood. Increased reactivity to adenosine of the airways of asthmatic but not of normal subjects underlines the role of adenosine in airway inflammation. The identification and pharmacological characterisation of different adenosine receptors have stimulated the search for subtype-specific ligands able to modulate the effects of this molecule in a directed way. Several compounds of different chemical classes have been identified as having po...
Hall WC, Nielsen SW, McEntee K.Tumours of the male genital tract, excluding the testes, are relatively rare in the six major domestic animals. The most important tumours are prostate carcinoma and transmissible venereal tumour of the penis in dogs, fibropapilloma of the penis in bulls, squamous papilloma and squamous cell carcinoma in horses, and squamous papilloma in pigs. Four histological types of canine prostate carcinoma exist: alveolar papillary, acinar, organoid, and poorly differentiated. The biological behaviour of prostate carcinomas is similar to that in man, with frequent metastasis to the regional pelvic nodes,...
