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.
Seo MG, Ouh IO, Kwak D.A clinical case of was reported for the first time in our previous study (2019) in a horse, a nondefinitive host. Although is a ruminant and not a zoonotic pathogen, it is responsible for persistent infections in horses. In this follow-up study, the prevalence of spp., including , was assessed in horse blood and lung tissue samples to fully understand spp. pathogen distribution and the potential risk factors of infection. Among 1696 samples, including 1433 blood samples from farms nationwide and 263 lung tissue samples from horse abattoirs on Jeju Island, a total of 29 samples (1.7%) teste...
Fanelli D, Moroni R, Bocci C, Camillo F, Rota A, Panzani D.Horses and donkeys differ phenotypically and karyotypically, although they can interbreed freely. Eight Standardbred mares and nine Amiata donkey jennies were included in the study. Semen was collected from two horses and two donkey stallions of proven fertility. A first pregnancy diagnosis was performed on day 10 after ovulation and repeated every day until embryo detection or until day 16. Irrespectively of the sire species, pregnancy rates in horse females (20/30, 66.7%) were significantly higher than in donkey females (19/70, 27.1%) (p < 0.05), while horse and donkey males did not affect p...
Rochais C, Lerch N, Gueguen L, Schmidlin M, Bonamy O, Grandgeorge M, Hausberger M.Tactile perception in humans varies between individuals and could depend on extrinsic factors such as working activity. In animals, there is no study relating the influence of animals' work and their tactile reactivity . We investigated horses' tactile reactivity using von Frey filament in different body areas and compared horses working only in equine-assisted interventions (EAI), in riding school (RS) lessons, and in both activities (EAI-RS). We further compared tactile actions by people with or without mental and/or developmental disorders during brushing sessions. The results indicated tha...
Hepworth-Warren KL, Nelson NC, Dembek KA, Young KAS.To compare thoracic ultrasonographic findings in healthy horses before and after general anesthesia for elective MRI utilizing a recently developed ultrasonographic scoring system to aid clinicians in the early identification of pneumonia following anesthesia. 13 adult horses > 3 years of age. Prior to anesthesia, horses underwent a thorough physical examination, CBC, thoracic radiography, and thoracic ultrasonography. Horses were then anesthetized for elective MRI, and thoracic ultrasonography was repeated within 3 hours after recovery. Thoracic ultrasonographic findings were scored utilizing...
Cantón GJ, Navarro MA, Asin J, Chu P, Henderson EE, Mete A, Uzal FA.Reproductive failure represents an important cause of economic loss for the equine industry. We reviewed the cases of equine abortion and stillbirth submitted to the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System, University of California-Davis from 1990 to 2022. A total of 1,774 cases were reviewed. A confirmed cause of abortion was determined in 29.2% of the cases. Abortion or stillbirth was attributed to infectious agents in 18.7% of the cases, with Streptococcus spp., equine herpesvirus 1, and Leptospira spp. being the most prevalent. Noninfectious causes of abortion were estab...
Matias AR, Santos GD, Almeida N.A significant number of institutionalized children have behavior problems. Socio-emotional skills are fundamental for their adaptation and success throughout life and are usually weakened in this population. Equine-assisted services (EAS) are a form of therapeutic mediation that facilitates and requires the practitioner's participation, contributing to the promotion of various psychomotor and socio-emotional dimensions. This study was developed during 17 sessions of EAS with a psychomotor intervention, which took place individually and weekly and lasted approximately 45 min, with three institu...
Elghandour MMMY, Maggiolino A, García EIC, Sánchez-Aparicio P, De Palo P, Ponce-Covarrubias JL, Pliego AB, Salem AZM.This review examines the available data regarding the positive effects of microencapsulated essential oils (EOs) on the nutrition, metabolism, and possibly the methane emission of horses. A literature review was conducted on the effect of microencapsulated (EOs) on the health of horses. The information comprises articles published in recent years in indexed journals. The results indicate that mixtures of microencapsulated EOs may be beneficial to equine health due to their antimicrobial and antioxidant activity, as well as their effects on enteric methane production, nutrient absorption, and i...
Thomassen EE, Sigsgaard EE, Jensen MR, Olsen K, Hansen MDD, Svenning JC, Thomsen PF.Trophic rewilding is increasingly applied in restoration efforts, with the aim of reintroducing the ecological functions provided by large-bodied mammals and thereby promote self-regulating, biodiverse ecosystems. However, empirical evidence for the effects of megafauna introductions on the abundance and richness of other organisms such as plants and invertebrates, and the mechanisms involved still need strengthening. In this study, we use environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding of dung from co-existing feral cattle and horses to assess the seasonal variation in plant diet and dung-associated a...
Sanmartí J, Robles-Guirado JA, Jose-Cunilleras E, Bassols A.The determination of iCa and iMg is important in veterinary medicine, but their immediate determination in whole blood is not always possible. Their stability in other sample types and the existence of interferences must be evaluated before its use. Objective: We aimed to analyze the effects of storage time on the stability of iCa, iMg, and other analytes in whole blood, plasma, and serum samples in horses and assess the interference of heparin in these measurements. Methods: Whole blood, heparin-plasma, and serum samples from 10 horses were stored at 4°C and analyzed 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, ...
Evans JP, Meckstroth S, Garai J.Rhizomatous growth and associated physiological integration can allow a clonal dune species to potentially compensate for the selective removal of leaves associated with herbivory. is a rhizomatous clonal plant species that is abundant in the coastal dune environments of the southeastern United States that are inhabited by large feral horse populations. has been shown to integrate resources among ramets within extensive clones as an adaptation to resource heterogeneity in sandy soils. In this study, we hypothesized that clonal integration is a mechanism that promotes persistence in these co...
Liu X, Seguin-Orlando A, Chauvey L, Tressières G, Schiavinato S, Tonasso-Calvière L, Aury JM, Perdereau A, Wagner S, Clavel P, Estrada O, Pan J....Age profiling of archaeological bone assemblages can inform on past animal management practices, but is limited by the fragmentary nature of the fossil record and the lack of universal skeletal markers for age. DNA methylation clocks offer new, albeit challenging, alternatives for estimating the age-at-death of ancient individuals. Here, we take advantage of the availability of a DNA methylation clock based on 31,836 CpG sites and dental age markers in horses to assess age predictions in 84 ancient remains. We evaluate our approach using whole-genome sequencing data and develop a capture assay...
Teti G, Mazzotti E, Gatta V, Chiarini F, Alfieri ML, Falconi M.Osteoarthritis (OA) is described as a chronic degenerative disease characterized by the loss of articular cartilage. Senescence is a natural cellular response to stressors. Beneficial in certain conditions, the accumulation of senescent cells has been implicated in the pathophysiology of many diseases associated with aging. Recently, it has been demonstrated that mesenchymal stem/stromal cells isolated from OA patients contain many senescent cells that inhibit cartilage regeneration. However, the link between cellular senescence in MSCs and OA progression is still debated. In this study, we ai...
Sandersen C, Dmitrovic P, Dupont J, Cesarini C, Guyot H, Serteyn D, Kirsch K.Different blood gas analyzers are used in equine practice. Every machine needs to be validated, as they have not been designed for use in horses. The aim of this study was to compare the newly marketed GEM5000 machine to the formerly validated epoc machine for blood gas analysis in horses. In this prospective, non-blinded, comparative laboratory analyzer study, 43 equine blood samples were analyzed on both analyzers and values were compared between the two machines via Lin's concordance analysis, Passing-Bablok regression analysis and Bland-Altman plots. Duplicate measurements were conducted o...
Davis MS, Barrett MR.Mitochondrial function-oxidative phosphorylation and the generation of reactive oxygen species-is critical in both health and disease. Thus, measuring mitochondrial function is fundamental in biomedical research. Skeletal muscle is a robust source of mitochondria, particularly in animals with a very high aerobic capacity, such as horses, making them ideal subjects for studying mitochondrial physiology. This article demonstrates the use of high-resolution respirometry with concurrent fluorometry, with freshly harvested skeletal muscle mitochondria, to quantify the capacity to oxidize substrates...
Ludwig EK, Hallowell K, Womble M, O'Neil E.A 2-day-old Cleveland Bay colt was referred to the Equine Emergency Service of the Farm Animal and Equine Veterinary Medical Center at North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine for evaluation of decreased nursing behaviour and right hindlimb lameness of 2 days' duration. When assisted to stand, the foal was unable to extend either hindlimb or bear weight on the hindlimbs, the right patella was luxated laterally and unable to be reduced, and the foal assumed a crouched position. Stifle radiographs revealed minimal, heterogeneous, ill-defined ossification of both patellae....
Demyda-Peyrás S, Laseca N, Anaya G, Kij-Mitka B, Molina A, Karlau A, Valera M.Chromosomal abnormalities are largely associated with fertility impairments in the domestic horse. To date, over 600 cases of individuals carrying abnormal chromosome complements have been reported, making the domestic horse the species with the highest prevalence. However, studies analyzing the prevalence of chromosomal diseases in whole populations are scarce. We, therefore, employed a two-step molecular tool to screen and diagnose chromosomal abnormalities in a large population of 25,237 Pura Raza Español horses. Individuals were first screened using short tandem repeats parentage testing ...
Burn JB.The aim of this study was to describe placement of a nictitating membrane flap as a treatment for corneal ulceration and bullous keratopathy in two horses. Methods: A 13-year-old American Saddlebred mare presented for severe corneal edema, superficial stromal ulceration, and a central bulla of the left eye. A 4-year-old Trakhener stallion also presented with a large axial bulla of the left eye with concurrent severe corneal edema and a deep stromal ulcer. Methods: A complete ophthalmic examination was performed. Samples were obtained for corneal cytology, and both horses were started on aggres...
Lewis N, Canesin H, Choi YH, Foss R, Felix M, Rader K, Hinrichs K.Information on factors associated with developmental competence of equine in vitro -produced (IVP) blastocysts is lacking. Objective: To determine the relationships of stage, grade, day of development, and specific morphological parameters of equine IVP blastocysts, to pregnancy and foaling rates. Methods: Photomicrographs of 316 IVP embryos with known pregnancy outcomes were scrutinised individually by four observers. Inter-observer variation was assessed, and pregnancy outcome evaluated in relation to day of blastocyst development and assigned grade and stage. Individual component analysis w...
Nagy A, Dyson S.There are no detailed data on complications of sacroiliac (SI) joint region injections or on the variability of the methods and circumstances of injections among clinicians. Objective: To describe complications following diagnostic, therapeutic and combined SI joint region injections and the details of how these are routinely performed by a large number of clinicians. Methods: Cross-sectional questionnaire survey. Methods: Clinicians (members of American and European specialist colleges and veterinarians known to the authors), invited by email, who had performed ≥1 SI joint region injection,...
Simonin EM, Babasyan S, Tarsillo J, Wagner B.IgE+ plasmablasts develop following allergen exposure and B cell activation. They secrete IgE and therefore are directly linked to maintain the mechanisms of IgE-mediated allergies. Here, we show that the presence of IgE+ plasmablasts in peripheral blood not only coincides with clinical allergy, but also predicts the upcoming development of clinical disease. Using an equine model of naturally occurring allergy, we compared the timing of allergen exposure, arrival of IgE+ plasmablasts in peripheral blood, and onset of clinical disease. We found that IgE+ plasmablasts predict the development of ...
Hoffmann MF, Bernstorff M, Kreitz N, Roetman B, Schildhauer TA, Wenning KE.For ages, humankind and horses have been closely related to occupational and recreational activities. The dangers of engaging with horses have been previously reported. Among sporting activities, horse riding is well-known for its risks. Despite multiple recommendations to wear protective gear, horse-related activities still comprise the risk of severe injuries. This study aimed to examine: (1) if specific mechanisms are correlated to particular injury patterns and (2) if injury types are related to patient demographics. Methods: From one level I trauma center, between July 2019 and July 2022 ...
Bonomelli N, Bonilla AG.Publications about equine standing surgery are flourishing, however, information regarding its use and prevalence among surgeons is still limited. Objective: To determine the current use and recent trends for equine standing surgery among board certified surgeons and to identify the main reasons and limitations for performing a procedure standing. Methods: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: A 139-item questionnaire was sent by email to 733 large animal surgery Diplomates (ACVS and ECVS) from November 2020 to February 2021. The survey collected demographic information and general data regarding s...
Peixoto Rabelo I, Barroco de Paula V, Carvalho Bustamante C, Santana AM, Gomes da Silva D, Baldassi AC, Canola PA, Araújo Valadão CA.Horses submitted to carbohydrate overload can develop laminitis due to changes in cecal pH and microbiota, followed by an increase in transmural absorption of luminal content, including bacterial toxins. In response to acute injury there is hepatic overproduction of several proteins known as acute phase proteins (APP). Few studies have evaluated protein fractionation to characterize the inflammatory response in acute laminitis. The aim of this study was to test the viability of an experimental model to induce acute laminitis, using a single carbohydrate overload, and the influence of a bufferi...
Kaneps AJ.Regenerative medicine therapies have become significant tools for treatment of joint, soft tissue, and a variety of other conditions in animals and humans. Regenerative medicine aims to restore form and function of injured tissues using the body's own resources such as cells, fluids (ie, plasma and serum), and their resulting anti-inflammatory and prohealing cytokines. Platelet-rich plasma and other hemoderivatives have application for joint disorders such as osteoarthritis, cartilage injury, synovitis, and soft tissue injuries. These therapies achieve anti-inflammatory and healing effects wit...
Schrenk D, Bignami M, Bodin L, Del Mazo JKCJ, Grasl-Kraupp B, Hogstrand C, Leblanc JC, Nielsen E, Ntzani E, Petersen A, Sand S, Schwerdtle T....In 2017, the EFSA Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM) adopted a Scientific Opinion on the risks for animal health related to the presence of deoxynivalenol (DON) and its acetylated and modified forms in food and feed. No observed adverse effect levels (NOAELs) and lowest observed adverse effect levels (LOAELs) were derived for different animal species. For horses, an NOAEL of 36 mg DON/kg feed was established, the highest concentration tested and not showing adverse effects. For poultry, an NOAEL of 5 mg DON/kg feed for broiler chickens and laying hens, and an NOAEL of 7 mg DO...
Yamaguchi T, Hirakawa R, Ochiai H.Lipid compositions of mammalian erythrocyte membranes are different among species. Therefore, the information on hemolysis from mammalian erythrocytes is useful to understand membrane properties of human erythrocytes. In this work, pressure-induced hemolysis and hypotonic one were examined using erythrocytes of human, sheep, cow, cat, dog, pig, horse, rat, and mouse. Pressure-induced hemolysis was suppressed by membrane sphingomyelin, whereas hypotonic hemolysis decreased upon increment of cell diameter. Mass spectra of erythrocyte membrane lipids demonstrated that sphingomyelin with an acyl c...
Luethy D.The continued recognition and emergence of alphavirus and flavivirus diseases is a growing veterinary and public health concern. As the global environment continues to change, mosquito-borne diseases will continue to evolve and expand. Continued development of readily available vaccines for the prevention of these diseases in humans and animals is essential to controlling epizootics of these diseases. Further research into effective antiviral treatments is also sorely needed. This article describes equine encephalitis viruses with a focus on clinical and public health considerations.
Ogorek TJ, Golden JE.Venezuelan, western, and eastern equine encephalitic alphaviruses (VEEV, WEEV, and EEEV, respectively) are arboviruses that are highly pathogenic to equines and cause significant harm to infected humans. Currently, human alphavirus infection and the resulting diseases caused by them are unmitigated due to the absence of approved vaccines or therapeutics for general use. These circumstances, combined with the unpredictability of outbreaks-as exemplified by a 2019 EEE surge in the United States that claimed 19 patient lives-emphasize the risks posed by these viruses, especially for aerosolized V...
Oliver A, Conrado FO, Nolen-Walston R.Equine granulocytic anaplasmosis is a clinically significant and common disease of equids that has a broader prevalence than was once thought. The most common clinical signs include high fever and edema, with mild to mderate thrombocytopenia and lymphopenia typically noted on complete blood count. Subclinical cases are reported and many are self-limiting. Rare clinical presentations include neurologic disease, vasculitis, dysphagia, rhabdomyolysis, or bicavitary effusion. Most cases resolve rapidly with appropriate antimicrobial intervention.
Backer JA, Nodelijk G.African horse sickness (AHS) is an equine viral disease that is spread by Culicoides spp. Since the closely related disease bluetongue established itself in The Netherlands in 2006, AHS is considered a potential threat for the Dutch horse population. A vector-host model that incorporates the current knowledge of the infection biology is used to explore the effect of different parameters on whether and how the disease will spread, and to assess the effect of control measures. The time of introduction is an important determinant whether and how the disease will spread, depending on temperature a...
van Loon JPAM, Van Dierendonck MC.Objective pain assessment is important to guide and tailor therapy in clinical practice. This study describes the clinical applicability and validity of two pain scales, the Composite Pain Scale (CPS) and the Equine Utrecht University Scale for Facial Assessment of Pain (EQUUS-FAP) in horses with orthopaedic trauma or after orthopaedic surgery. A cohort follow-up study was performed using 77 adult horses (n=43 with orthopaedic trauma or injury; n=34 controls). Composite and facial expression-based pain scores were assessed by direct observations of pairs of two independent observers. All horse...
Stout TA, Allen WR.A growing equine conceptus must suppress the cyclical release of PGF(2 alpha) from the endometrium to effect maternal recognition of its presence in the uterus. Paradoxically, the conceptus itself secretes PGF(2 alpha), together with other prostaglandins. In this study, the PGF(2 alpha) and PGE(2) content of, and production in vitro by, day 10-32 equine conceptuses were measured and the influence of pregnancy on the concentrations of these prostaglandins in the uterine lumen was examined. In vitro, the release of both prostaglandins per mg conceptus tissue was very high on day 10 after ovulati...
Scantlebury CE, Zerfu A, Pinchbeck GP, Reed K, Gebreab F, Aklilu N, Mideksa K, Christley R.Epizootic lymphangitis (EZL) is reported to have a significant impact upon livelihoods within resource-poor settings. This study used a participatory approach to explore peoples' experiences of EZL and examine the perceived impact of disease, owner knowledge and understanding of EZL, lay management of disease and, attitudes and strategies towards disease prevention. Focus-group discussions were held with 358 cart-horse owners and drivers recruited from 7 towns attended by SPANA (Society for the protection of animals abroad) mobile veterinary clinics and 2 unexposed towns where no SPANA clinics...
Bayly WM, Hodgson DR, Schulz DA, Dempsey JA, Gollnick PD.The effects of exercise intensity and duration on blood gases in thoroughbred horses were studied to characterize the apparent exercise-induced failure in pulmonary gas exchange that occurs in these animals. In response to 2 min of exercise, arterial CO2 tension (PaCO2) decreased in mild and moderate exercise, returned to normocapnic levels in moderate to heavy exercise, and rose 5-10 Torr above resting values during very heavy exercise when CO2 production (VCO2) exceeded 20 times the resting value, and mixed venous CO2 tension approximated 140 Torr. Exercise-induced hypoxemia occurred at the ...
Lindahl SB, Aspán A, Båverud V, Paillot R, Pringle J, Rash NL, Söderlund R, Waller AS.Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) is generally considered a commensal and an opportunistic pathogen of the upper airways in horses. Establishing whether certain strains of S. zooepidemicus can cause upper respiratory disease as a host-specific pathogen of horses, and if there are certain genogroups of S. zooepidemicus that are more virulent than others is of major clinical importance. In this study, we describe an outbreak of upper respiratory disease in horses that was associated with S. zooepidemicus. Upper respiratory samples were cultured, analyzed by real-time PCR...
Théon AP, Wilson WD, Magdesian KG, Pusterla N, Snyder JR, Galuppo LD.To determine outcome associated with cutaneous tumors treated via intratumoral chemotherapy with cisplatin and identify risk factors affecting local tumor control and complications in equidae. Methods: Retrospective case series. Methods: 573 equidae with 630 cutaneous tumors. Methods: Medical records of horses, mules, donkeys, and ponies with cutaneous tumors treated via intratumoral chemotherapy with cisplatin were analyzed. Results: 549 horses, 13 mules, 8 donkeys, and 3 ponies with 630 histologically confirmed cutaneous tumors were included. Tumors included sarcoids (n = 409), squamous cell...
Pacholewska A, Jagannathan V, Drögemüller M, Klukowska-Rötzler J, Lanz S, Hamza E, Dermitzakis ET, Marti E, Leeb T, Gerber V.Recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) is a common and potentially debilitating lower airway disease in horses, which shares many similarities with human asthma. In susceptible horses RAO exacerbation is caused by environmental allergens and irritants present in hay dust. The objective of this study was the identification of genes and pathways involved in the pathology of RAO by global transcriptome analyses in stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). We performed RNA-seq on PBMCs derived from 40 RAO affected and 45 control horses belonging to three cohorts of Warmblood horses: two h...
Janova E, Matiasovic J, Vahala J, Vodicka R, Van Dyk E, Horin P.The major histocompatibility complex genes coding for antigen binding and presenting molecules are the most polymorphic genes in the vertebrate genome. We studied the DRA and DQA gene polymorphism of the family Equidae. In addition to 11 previously reported DRA and 24 DQA alleles, six new DRA sequences and 13 new DQA alleles were identified in the genus Equus. Phylogenetic analysis of both DRA and DQA sequences provided evidence for trans-species polymorphism in the family Equidae. The phylogenetic trees differed from species relationships defined by standard taxonomy of Equidae and from trees...
Gustafsson A, Båverud V, Gunnarsson A, Rantzien MH, Lindholm A, Franklin A.In Sweden there are several reports of mares developing acute colitis while their foals were being treated orally for Rhodococcus equi pneumonia with the combination of erythromycin and rifampicin. In this study 6 adult horses were given low oral dosages of these antibiotics, singly or in combination. Within 3 days post administration of erythromycin, in one case in combination with rifampicin, 2 horses developed severe colitis (one fatal). Clostridium difficile was isolated from one of the horses, whereas no specific pathogens were isolated from the other. Both horses had typical changes in b...
Manteca Vilanova X, De Briyne N, Beaver B, Turner PV.Collection of blood from pregnant mares for extraction of equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) is a critical but relatively unknown and poorly regulated practice in the countries in which it occurs. Equine chorionic gonadotropin is a hormone that is widely used to enhance reproductive performance and management of dairy and beef cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs kept under intensive housing systems. eCG is extracted from the blood of brood mares between days 40-120 of gestation. Although alternatives have been sought, there is currently no efficacious replacement, natural or synthetic, for eCG. Re...
Aguilar CM, Rangel EF, Garcia L, Fernandez E, Momen H, Grimaldi Filho G, De Vargas Z.After outbreaks of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Solano State, Venezuela, 5% of the population had parasitized ulcers while after similar outbreaks in Mesquita, Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, 9% had the disease. In these foci children, including some under six years of age, were affected. There was no significant difference in the occurrence of the disease according to sex or type of employment. In Solano, 3% of dogs and 28% of donkeys had parasitized lesions, while in Mesquita these indices were 19.8% and 30.8% respectively. The parasite from man, dogs and equines was identified as Leishmania (Vi...
Gonzalez-Salazar D, Estrada-Franco JG, Carrara AS, Aronson JF, Weaver SC.To assess the role of horses as amplification hosts during the 1993 and 1996 Mexican Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) epizootics, we subcutaneously infected 10 horses by using four different equine isolates. Most horses showed little or no disease and low or nonexistent viremia. Neurologic disease developed in only 1 horse, and brain histopathologic examination showed meningeal lymphocytic infiltration, perivascular cuffing, and focal encephalitis. Three animals showed mild meningoencephalitis without clinical disease. Viral RNA was detected in the brain of several animals 12-14 days after...
Ferris DJ, Frisbie DD, McIlwraith CW, Kawcak CE.Medications are frequently employed to treat intra-articular (IA) problems in the performance horse. Actual usage of the different IA medications in horses is not available. Objective: To determine the most common usage of these medications, members of the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) were surveyed. Methods: An email link to an online survey was electronically sent to 6305 AAEP members and the responses tabulated and analysed with a logistic regression model. Results: A total of 831 survey responses were submitted and tabulated. Eighty per cent of the respondents indicat...
Martínez-Valladares M, Geurden T, Bartram DJ, Martínez-Pérez JM, Robles-Pérez D, Bohórquez A, Florez E, Meana A, Rojo-Vázquez FA.The objective of this study was to evaluate the status of anthelmintic resistance (AR) in ruminants and horses in Spain. The efficacy of commonly used macrocyclic lactones (MLs) - ivermectin (IVM) and moxidectin (MOX) - was measured in sheep, cattle and horses. In addition, albendazole (ABZ) and levamisole (LEV) were evaluated in sheep and oxibendazole (OXI) and pyrantel (PYR) in horses. Efficacy was evaluated based on the difference between the arithmetic mean pre- and post-treatment faecal egg count (in cattle and horses), or compared to an untreated control group (in sheep). AR was present ...
Höglund J, Ljungström BL, Nilsson O, Lundquist H, Osterman E, Uggla A.A survey was performed on the occurrence of some internal parasites in 461 horses (1-30 years old) slaughtered from October 1992 to September 1993 at the Linköping abattoir in central Sweden. Macroscopical examination was carried out specifically for parasites of the tear ducts and conjunctival sacs of the eyes, and of selected parts of the alimentary tract and cardio-vascular system. The following parasites were found in selected parts of the large intestine: encapsulated cyathostome larvae (in 35.6% of the horses), and mature strongyle worms (17.4%); in the stomach: Gasterophilus intestinal...
Spiesz EM, Thorpe CT, Thurner PJ, Screen HRC.Structure-function relationships in tendons are directly influenced by the arrangement of collagen fibres. However, the details of such arrangements in functionally distinct tendons remain obscure. This study demonstrates the use of quantitative polarised light microscopy (qPLM) to identify structural differences in two major tendon compartments at the mesoscale: fascicles and interfascicular matrix (IFM). It contrasts functionally distinct positional and energy storing tendons, and considers changes with age. Of particular note, the technique facilitates the analysis of crimp parameters, in w...
Hughes KJ, Nicolson L, Da Costa N, Franklin SH, Allen KJ, Dunham SP.Inflammatory airway disease (IAD) is a common disorder of performance horses and is associated with poor performance and accumulation of mucus and inflammatory cells in lower airway secretions. Horses with IAD frequently have increased relative counts of neutrophils in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF); less commonly relative counts of eosinophils and/or mast cells may be increased. The aetiopathogenesis of IAD is unknown and may involve innate and/or acquired immune responses to various factors including respirable dust constituents, micro-organisms, noxious gases and unconditioned air. The...
Giguère S, Gaskin JM, Miller C, Bowman JL.To determine efficacy of a commercially available hyperimmune plasma product for prevention of naturally acquired pneumonia caused by Rhodococcus equi in foals. Methods: Randomized clinical trial. Methods: 165 foals. Methods: Foals were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups (hyperimmune plasma or nontreated controls). Foals with failure of passive transfer (FPT) of immunity were treated with hyperimmune plasma and evaluated as a third group. Foals that received plasma were given 950 ml between 1 and 10 days of age and between 30 and 50 days of age. A tracheobronchial aspirate was obtained from fo...
Avila F, Mickelson JR, Schaefer RJ, McCue ME.Selective breeding for athletic performance in various disciplines has resulted in population stratification within the American Quarter Horse (QH) breed. The goals of this study were to utilize high density genotype data to: (1) identify genomic regions undergoing positive selection within and among QH subpopulations; (2) investigate haplotype structure within each QH subpopulation; and (3) identify candidate genes within genomic regions of interest (ROI), as well as biological pathways, predicted to play a role in elite performance in each group. For that, 65K SNP genotyping data on 143 elit...
Arnold CE, Isaiah A, Pilla R, Lidbury J, Coverdale JS, Callaway TR, Lawhon SD, Steiner J, Suchodolski JS.Antibiotic administration can be a cause of gastrointestinal disease in horses, creating a disruption in the normal population and function of bacteria found in the hindgut. The objective of this study was to describe the changes in the cecal and fecal microbiomes and metabolomes of clinically healthy horses before and after metronidazole administration. Metronidazole (15 mg/kg BID PO) was given to five horses with cecal cannulas. The study was suspended on Day 3 due to adverse gastrointestinal effects. Cecal and fecal samples were obtained before (Days minus52, m28, m14, and 0) and after (Day...
Hirota J, Nishi H, Matsuda H, Tsunemitsu H, Shimiz S.Flavivirus-infected sera are known to show cross-reactions in serodiagnoses of heterologous flavivirus infections. Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is endemic in Asia and, in Japan, many horses are vaccinated against JEV. However, the cross-reactivity level of JEV-vaccinated horse sera in the serodiagnosis of West Nile virus (WNV) has not been clarified. The antibody cross-reactivity of JEV-vaccinated horse sera in WNV serological tests, such as the plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT), IgG indirect ELISA (IgG-ELISA) and hemagglutination inhibition (HI) test, was examined. All JEV-vacc...
Ling Y, Ma Y, Guan W, Cheng Y, Wang Y, Han J, Jin D, Mang L, Mahmut H.Y chromosome acts as a single nonrecombining unit that is male specific and in effect haploid, thus ensuring the preservation of mutational events as a single haplotype via male lines. In this study, 6 Y chromosome-specific microsatellites (SSR) were tested for the patrilineal genetic variations of 573 male samples from Chinese domestic horse (30 breeds), Przewalski's horse, and donkey. All the 6 loci appeared as a haplotype block in Przewalski's horse and the domestic donkey. There were notable differences, however, at Y chromosome markers between horse and donkey. There were 2 haplotypes of ...
Bergmann F, Trachsel DS, Stoeckle SD, Bernis Sierra J, Lübke S, Groschup MH, Gehlen H, Ziegler U.Following the introduction of the West Nile virus (WNV) into eastern Germany in 2018, increasing infections have been diagnosed in birds, equines, and humans over time, while the spread of WNV into western Germany remained unclear. We screened 437 equine sera from 2018 to 2020, excluding vaccinated horses, collected from convenience sampled patients in the eastern and western parts of Germany, for WNV-specific antibodies (ELISAs followed by virus/specific neutralization tests) and genomes (RT-qPCRs). Clinical presentations, final diagnoses, and demographic data were also recorded. In the easte...
Ellis SA, Martin AJ, Holmes EC, Morrison WI.Nineteen horse MHC class I specificities have been serologically identified previously at a single locus (ELA-A), and two other specificities appear to be coded at other loci. Biochemical studies indicate that there are at least two expressed loci. In order to establish the number of transcribed horse MHC class I genes, we made a cDNA library from a heterozygous animal (ELA-A3/A7), and screened for positive clones using a bovine class I probe. More than 200 class I clones were isolated in this way, and so far seven unique full length sequences have been identified. All of the sequences are pre...
Rodrigues A, Fighera RA, Souza TM, Schild AL, Barros CS.The clinical signs and pathology of the central nervous system in 9 horses with naturally occurring neurologic disease due to Trypanosoma evansi are described. The clinical course was 2 to 20 days; clinical signs included marked ataxia, blindness, head tilt and circling, hyperexcitability, obtundity, proprioceptive deficits, head pressing, and paddling movements. Grossly, asymmetric leukoencephalomalacia with yellowish discoloration of white matter and flattening of the gyri were observed in the brain of 7 of 9 horses. Histologically, all 9 horses had necrotizing encephalitis that was most sev...
Davidson EJ.Lameness examination is commonly performed in the athletic horse. A skilled lameness diagnostician must have keen clinical and observational skills. Evaluation starts with a detailed history and thorough physical examination. Next, gait evaluation in the moving horse is performed. Lame horses have asymmetrical body movement due to unconscious shift of body weight. Recognition of the resultant head nod and pelvic hike is the basis for lameness diagnosis. Lameness identification is enhanced by circling, limb flexions, and riding. Most lame horses do not exhibit pathognomonic gait characteristics...
Breathnach CC, Soboll G, Suresh M, Lunn DP.A commercial bovine IFN-gamma-specific monoclonal antibody was used to measure antigen-specific IFN-gamma production by equine lymphocytes. Paired PBMC samples were collected from six ponies prior to and 10 days after challenge infection with equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1). Each sample was stimulated in vitro with EHV-1, virus-free medium, or PMA and ionomycin, and labelled with monoclonal antibodies specific for various equine lymphocyte subset markers. Following fixation, intracellular IFN-gamma was detected using a FITC-conjugated bovine IFN-gamma-specific monoclonal antibody. In vitro restim...
Osthaus B, Proops L, Long S, Bell N, Hayday K, Burden F.There are clear differences between donkeys and horses in their evolutionary history, physiology, behaviour and husbandry needs. Donkeys are often kept in climates that they are not adapted to and as such may suffer impaired welfare unless protection from the elements is provided. Objective: To compare some of the hair coat properties of donkeys, mules and horses living outside, throughout the year, in the temperate climate of the UK. Methods: Longitudinal study. Methods: Hair samples were taken from 42 animals: 18 donkeys (4 females, 14 males), 16 horses (6 females, 10 males) and eight mules ...
