Omneity® Pellets
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Topic:Equine Health
Equine health encompasses the study and management of diseases, disorders, and overall well-being of horses. It involves understanding various physiological systems, preventive care, and treatment strategies to maintain optimal health in equine populations. Common areas of focus include nutrition, infectious diseases, orthopedic conditions, and reproductive health. Research in equine health aims to advance knowledge on diagnostic methods, therapeutic interventions, and management practices that improve horse welfare and performance. This page collects peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the diverse aspects of equine health, offering insights into current findings and advancements in the field.
Retrospective analysis of historical, clinical, ultrasonographic, serum biochemical and haematological data in prognostic evaluation of equine liver disease. Results of noninvasive tests of liver disease do not always correlate with the degree of hepatic disease nor outcome of the case. Objective: To investigate the prognostic value of data collected using noninvasive tests during the investigation of cases of suspected liver disease in mature horses. Objective: Much of the data gathered during the investigation of suspected hepatopathy cases offers little prognostic guidance and interpretation of such data can be misleading. Methods: The results from a range of common and noninvasive diagnostic techniques applied in 116 mature horses with suspecte...
West Nile virus infection of Thoroughbred horses in South Africa (2000-2001). West Nile virus (WNV) infection is endemic in southern Africa. With the recent emergence of WNV infection of horses in Europe and the USA the present study was performed to estimate the risk of seroconversion to WNV in a cohort of 488 young Thoroughbred (TB) horses. Objective: To estimate the risk of seroconversion to WNV among a cohort of South African TB yearlings sold at the 2001 National Yearling Sales (NYS) and to determine whether the risk varied geographically. Two horses were also infected with a recent South African isolate of WNV to evaluate its virulence in horses. Methods: Serum sa...
Inclined running increases pulmonary haemorrhage in the Thoroughbred horse. Capillary stress failure-induced (exercise-induced) pulmonary haemorrhage (EIPH) during intense running in horses is thought to involve both intravascular (i.e. mean pulmonary arterial pressure [Ppa] > 100 mmHg) and extravascular (e.g. negative inspiratory pressure swings) mechanisms. Objective: That inclined running would reduce breathing frequency (coupled to stride frequency) and increase tidal volume thus increasing lung volume changes and intrapleural pressure swings resulting in more pronounced EIPH. Methods: Six Thoroughbred horses were run to volitional fatigue (incremental step tes...
Lateral transmission of equine arteritis virus among Lipizzaner stallions in South Africa. A serological study conducted in 1995 revealed that 7 stallions at the Lipizzaner Centre, Gauteng, South Africa, were seropositive for antibody to equine arteritis virus (EAV). A Lipizzaner stallion imported into South Africa from Yugoslavia in 1981 had previously (1988) been confirmed to be an EAV carrier. Despite being placed under life-long breeding quarantine, EAV had been transmitted between stallions at the Lipizzaner Centre. Objective: To investigate the phylogenetic relationships between the strain of EAV shed in the semen of the original carrier stallion and strains recovered from the...
Development and application of a scoring system for prognostic evaluation of equine liver biopsies. The study was designed to investigate the prognostic value of liver biopsy during investigation of cases of suspected liver disease in mature horses. Objective: That liver biopsy is the most prognostically useful technique in common usage in the investigation of suspected liver disease. Methods: This study examined the prognostic value of liver biopsy during the investigation of suspected liver disease in 73 mature horses. Histopathological variables comprising fibrosis, irreversible cytopathology, inflammatory infiltration, haemosiderin accumulation and biliary hyperplasia were found to be si...
Ventriculocordectomy reduces respiratory noise in horses with laryngeal hemiplegia. Show and performance horse with laryngeal hemiplegia (LH) often present for excessive respiratory noise rather than significant exercise intolerance. Therefore, the goal of surgery in these horses is to reduce respiratory noise but there are no quantitative studies evaluating the effect of any upper-airway surgery in LH-affected horses. Objective: To determine whether bilateral ventriculocordectomy (VC) reduces respiratory noise in exercising horses with laryngeal hemiplegia. Methods: Six Standardbred horses with normal upper airways were used in this study. Respiratory sounds and inspiratory ...
Equine hepatic disease: the effect of patient- and case-specific variables on risk and prognosis. Liver disease is fairly common in horses and, although previous literature suggests that fatality rates are high, impressions gained from current clinical practice suggest that this is no longer the case. Objective: A case-control study was undertaken in 2 hospitals to investigate whether age, gender or breed type predisposed horses to developing hepatic disease, with the additional aim of determining whether these factors and disease category had any effect on outcome. Methods: Eighty-eight cases were identified by review of computerised archives at 2 hospitals. Three cases admitted immediate...
Effect of lateral heel wedges on sagittal and transverse plane kinematics of trotting Shetland ponies and the influence of feeding and training regimes. Lateral heel wedges are used to treat horses and ponies with patella fixation or bone spavin. However, these therapies are purely empirically based and lack scientific evidence. Objective: Lateral heel wedges would change joint motion in the sagittal, but mainly in the transversal planes, in healthy horses. This effect would be increased by restricted feeding and decreased by extra training. Methods: A group of 24 Shetland ponies age 3 years was used, as foals had been assigned to restricted and ad libitum (ad lib) feeding, and low and high level training groups of 6 animals each. An experienc...
Severe hypertriglyceridaemia in clinically ill horses: diagnosis, treatment and outcome. Sporadic measurement of serum triglycerides in depressed and inappetant clinically ill horses revealed severe hypertriglyceridaemia without visible evidence of lipaemia on several occasions, leading to the inclusion of serum triglyceride concentrations in the routine serum biochemistry evaluation of our hospital. Since then, more cases have been identified and treated for hypertriglyceridaemia, raising questions about the prevalence, predisposing factors and significance of these findings. Objective: 1) Severe hypertriglyceridaemia without visible opacity of the serum occurs more commonly in c...
Ophthalmic lesions in 83 geriatric horses and ponies. Ophthalmic lesions were detected in 67 of 83 horses and ponies aged 15 years or more. Degeneration of the vitreous, followed by senile retinopathy, were the most common lesions and both of them became more common with advancing age, although few of the owners reported disturbances of vision in their animals.
Differences in polymorphonucleocyte function and local inflammatory response between horses and ponies. Wound healing proceeds faster in ponies than in horses and complications during healing, such as wound infection, occur less frequently in ponies. Earlier studies suggested that this difference might be related to differences in the initial post traumatic inflammatory response. Objective: That polymorphonuclear leucocyte (PMN) function and profiles of humoral factors in local inflammatory processes are different in horses and ponies. Methods: PMNs were isolated from venous blood of horses and ponies. Chemotaxis and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production was determined. Tissue cages were impl...
Serum beta-carotene and alpha-tocopherol in horses fed beta-carotene via grass-meal or a synthetic beadlet preparation with and without added dietary fat. The serum response of beta-carotene as an indicator of bioavailability was compared after feeding beta-carotene (0.8 mg/kg body weight) either from grass meal or a synthetic beadlet preparation (Lucarotin). Both were each given without or with added dietary vegetable fat (2-2.5% vs. 6.6% fat in dry matter) in a Latin square design with four horses. The nutritionally complete diet was supplemented with alpha-tocopherol (4 mg/kg body weight). Each treatment period (4 weeks, two serum samples) was followed by a washout period of 4 weeks with low intakes of beta-carotene (traces) and alpha-tocophe...
Different CREM-isoform gene expression between equine and human normal and impaired spermatogenesis. Histone-to-protamine exchange causes chromatin condensation ceasing gene expression in elongating spermatids. Gene expression of protamines is regulated by the transcription factor cAMP-responsive element modulator (CREM). Altered CREM expression results in male infertility, as shown by CREM-knock-out mice being sterile due to round spermatid maturation arrest and patients exhibiting round spermatid maturation arrest revealing a lack or substantial reduction of both CREM-mRNA and CREM-protein. Similar defects in histone-to-protamine exchange have been suggested in infertile stallions exhibitin...
Effects of oat processing on the glycaemic and insulin responses in horses. This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of different oat processing techniques on the plasma glucose and insulin response in horses. In a cross-over design, six horses (ages 4-15 years, mean body weight+/-SD: 450+/-37 kg) were fed in random order: untreated oats, finely ground, steam-flaked and popped oats. The total oat intake varied between 1.05-1.5 kg/day, and the amount of diet was adjusted to a starch content of 630 g starch per day and horse (1.2-1.5 g starch/kg BW/day). During the stabilization period of 10 days, horses additionally received 6 kg grass hay. Following this adapt...
Reactive oxygen species promote tyrosine phosphorylation and capacitation in equine spermatozoa. The objective of this study was to examine the influence of reactive oxygen species (ROS) on equine sperm capacitation. Motile equine spermatozoa were separated on a discontinuous Percoll gradient, resuspended at 10 x 10(6)ml in Tyrode's medium supplemented with BSA (0.5%) and polyvinyl alcohol (0.5%) and incubated at 39 degrees C for 2h with or without the xanthine (X; 0.1mM)-xanthine oxidase (XO; 0.01 U/ml) system or NADPH (0.25 mM). The importance of hydrogen peroxide or superoxide for capacitation was determined by the addition of catalase (CAT; 150 U/ml) or superoxide dismutase (SOD; 150 ...
The course of some bone remodelling plasma metabolites in healthy horses and in horses offered a calcium-deficient diet. An inquiry was carried out to assess the concentrations of plasma metabolites related to bone remodelling in 21 saddle horses of Warmblood breed aged 4-26 years, five draught horses of Ardennes breed aged 4-10 years, and 10 Ardennes foals aged 9-11 months. They were fed according to normal feeding practice in Belgium. The changes in some bone remodelling plasma metabolite concentrations were studied when an unbalanced diet was offered and later corrected for four Warmblood horses. Bone formation was evaluated by bone alkaline phosphatase (BALP), total alkaline phosphatase (TALP) and osteocalci...
beta-Adrenergic stimulated lipolysis in pony adipocytes is exclusively via a beta2-subtype and is not affected by lactation. Catecholamines are important lipolytic agents in horses and ponies but the nature of the adrenergic receptor subtype distribution in their adipocytes is uncertain. A first objective was to identify the beta-adrenergic receptor subtype(s) present in adipocytes from horses and ponies. A second objective was to evaluate if the lipolytic responsiveness of isolated adipocytes to beta-adrenergic agonists is altered during lactation, a condition known to affect markedly maternal fat metabolism. Isoproterenol and salbutamol elicited strong lipolytic responses in adipocytes isolated from horse and pony...
Equestrian injuries in New Zealand, 1993-2001: knowledge and experience. The aims of this study were to investigate the extent of equestrian injuries in New Zealand and provide a range of prevention interventions. Methods: An examination of New Zealand Health Information Service (NZHIS) morbidity data for 1993 to 2001 and mortality data for 1993 to 1999 was undertaken. Recent studies on equestrian injuries were evaluated. Results: NZHIS data indicated that as a result of horse-related injuries 5613 people were hospitalised between 1993 and 2001 and there were 16 fatalities between 1993 and 1999. Horse-related injuries were most prevalent in young females aged 10 to...
Case-control study of factors associated with fibrinous pericarditis among horses in central Kentucky during spring 2001. To identify factors significantly associated with an epidemic of fibrinous pericarditis during spring 2001 among horses in central Kentucky. Methods: Case-control study. Methods: 38 horses with fibrinous pericarditis and 30 control horses examined for other reasons. Methods: A questionnaire was developed to solicit information regarding a wide range of management practices and environmental exposures from farm owners or managers. Results: The following factors were found in bivariate analyses to be significantly associated with an increased risk of pericarditis: being from a farm with mares an...
Characterization of antimicrobial aerosols for administration to horses. A study was conducted to characterize the aerosols produced by a medical ultrasonic nebulizer using solutions containing antimicrobials appropriate for therapy of equine lower respiratory bacterial infections (gentamicin sulfate and ceftiofur sodium). Test aerosols were generated using an ultrasonic nebulizer and were analyzed using a laser diffraction aerosol particle analyzer. The aerosol was described in terms of the particle size distribution (volume median diameter), span (sample dispersion), and aerosol density (% volume). The particle size distribution and aerosol density of gentamicin ...
The detection and biotransformation of guanabenz in horses: a preliminary report. Guanabenz (2,6-dichlorobenzylidene-amino-guanidine) is a centrally acting antihypertensive drug whose mechanism of action is via alpha2 adrenoceptors or, more likely, imidazoline receptors. Guanabenz is marketed as an antihypertensive agent in human medicine (Wytensin tablets, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals). Guanabenz has reportedly been administered to racing horses and is classified by the Association of Racing Commissioners International as a class 3 foreign substance. As such, its identification in a postrace sample may result in significant sanctions against the trainer of the horse. The present ...
Novel plasmid-borne gene qacJ mediates resistance to quaternary ammonium compounds in equine Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus simulans, and Staphylococcus intermedius. We identified a novel plasmid-borne gene (designated qacJ) encoding resistance to quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) in three staphylococcal species associated with chronic infections in four horses. qacJ was located on a 2,650-bp plasmid (designated pNVH01), a new member of the pC194 family of rolling-circle replication plasmids. The 107-amino-acid protein, QacJ, showed similarities to known proteins of the small multidrug resistance family: Smr/QacC (72.5%), QacG (82.6%), and QacH (73.4%). The benzalkonium chloride MIC for a qacJ-containing recombinant was higher than those for otherwise i...
Effects of dopamine antagonists on alfentanil-induced locomotor activity in horses. To determine whether specific dopamine receptor antagonists block alfentanil-induced locomotor stimulation in horses. Methods: Randomized, prospective, crossover experiment. Methods: Eight adult horses (462-604 kg). Methods: Doses of dopamine-1 (D1) (NNC 01-0756) and dopamine-2 (D2) antagonists (eticlopride) were selected in a pilot study prior to a three part, blinded, cross-over study. In part 1, horses received 7.5 micro g kg-1 eticlopride, 5 micro g kg-1 NNC 01-0756 or an equal volume of saline. In part 2, they received both antagonists and in part 3, acepromazine at 0.05 mg kg-1. Locomoto...
Understanding stress concentration about a nutrient foramen. We investigated the microstructural basis of a reduced stress concentration around the primary nutrient foramen of the equine third metacarpus. We quantified the spatial variations of compositional parameters (mineral content, volume fraction, histological architecture, and osteonal trajectories) from microradiographs and polarizing microscopic images of thin sections. These variations in composition and organization in turn cause variations in mechanical properties of cortical bone. We modeled the spatially inhomogeneous anisotropic elastic properties based on the measured compositional param...
Preliminary evaluation of a behaviour-based system for assessment of post-operative pain in horses following arthroscopic surgery. To develop a method for objective assessment of equine post-operative pain. Methods: Prospective nonblinded clinical study. Methods: Twelve adult horses: Group 1 (G1, n = 6), admitted for arthroscopy (under general anaesthesia, with multimodal analgesia); Group 2 (G2, n = 6), 'pain free' controls. Methods: Horses were filmed continuously (CVI, time-lapse video recorder) over 72 hours, from 24 hours pre-surgery (PS) to 48 hours post-recovery (PR) (G1), and over 24 hours (G2). Activity budgets were determined from 24 to 0 hours PS, 0-24 and 24-48 hours PR (G1) and for 24 hours (G2). Using direct...
Changes in the EEG during castration in horses and ponies anaesthetized with halothane. To identify changes in the amplitude spectrum of the electroencephalogram (EEG) during a standardized surgical model of nociception in horses. Methods: Thirteen entire male horses and ponies referred to Division of Clinical Veterinary Science, Bristol (n = 9) and Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine (n = 4) for castration. Methods: Following pre-anaesthetic medication with acepromazine, anaesthesia was induced with guaiphenesin and thiopental and maintained with halothane in oxygen. The EEG was recorded continuously using subcutaneous needle electrodes. Additional monitoring comprised EC...
The cardiopulmonary effects of severe blood loss in anesthetized horses. To characterize the acute cardiopulmonary effects of severe hemorrhage in anesthetized horses. Methods: Prospective experimental study. Methods: Three geldings and six mares, aged 14.4 +/- 2.7 years, weighing 486 +/- 41 kg (range: 425-550 kg). Methods: Horses were anesthetized using xylazine, guaifenesin, ketamine and halothane or isoflurane. Cardiovascular variables, hematocrit, total solids, capillary refill time (CRT) and color of mucous membranes were measured as blood was collected from the carotid artery into sterile plastic bags. Arterial blood gas analysis was also performed. Results: ...
