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.
Trotter GW, Aanes WA.During an 8-month period, 3 horses were examined because of incomplete cryptorchid castration. Each horse had had surgery to remove 1 retained testis. In each case, the attending veterinarian believed castration had been adequately completed. History, rectal examination findings, and in 2 cases, high serum testosterone concentration were factors that led to the decision to do exploratory surgery on each horse. In each case, initial surgery had resulted in surgical removal of the tail of the epididymis, which was mistaken for testicular tissue.
Mathewson JJ, Simpson RB, Roush DA.Six isolations of Salmonella krefeld were made from clinical veterinary specimens. These isolates were multiply resistant to several antimicrobial agents commonly used to treat salmonellosis.
Barta O, Oyekan PP.Lymphocyte transformation test is a powerful tool in laboratory testing of immunologic competence of animals. The impaired function of the lymphocytes or presence of mitogenesis suppressing factors in the patient serum were detected by comparing lymphocyte transformation (expressed as thymidine incorporation) obtained in media containing either autologous, homologous, or fetal calf serum additions. Most valuable results were obtained by using at least two, preferably three, different phytomitogens: concanavalin A (Con A), pokeweed mitogen (PWM), and phytohemagglutinin (PHA) at optimal concentr...
Luther DG, Cox HU, Dimopoullos GT.Fatty acid composition of plasma lipids of normal horses was determined. Four fatty acids (C16:0, C18:0, C18:1, and C18:2) comprised 86.73% of the total, with C18:2 comprising 44.04% of the total. Eight other fatty acids were found in small amounts. Unsaturated fatty acids constituted 66% of the total. Marked variation was demonstrated in fatty acid occurrence and distribution in the sterol ester, triglyceride, phospholipid, and free fatty acid fractions.
Cymbaluk NF, Schryver HF, Hintz HF.The effects of copper intake on stable copper and 64Cu metabolism and on the excretory pathways of absorbed copper were examined in ponies. Bile and feces collected from two bile duct-cannulated ponies following an intravenous dose of 64Cu showed that bile was the main route of endogenous copper excretion. Stable copper and 64Cu metabolism were examined in three intact ponies fed dietary copper to provide 5.6, 16.6 and 25.7 mg Cu/100 kg body weight/day. The amount of copper excreted in urine was not influenced by dietary treatment. Stable copper absorption and 64Cu retention significantly incr...
Burrows GE.Phenylbutazone (PBZ), a classic anti-inflammatory and prostaglandin-synthesis inhibitor drug, was used to determine the role of prostaglandins and other mediators on the development and perpetuation of the response to intraperitoneal Escherichia coli endotoxin administration. The PBZ (15 mg/kg of body weight) was administered IV 30 minutes after endotoxin administration and was repeated later at 6 and 12 hours at a dose of 10 mg/kg. A variety of evaluation measurements (hematologic, blood glucose, pyruvate, lactate and fibrinogen, serum beta-glucuronidase, prothrombin time, blood gases, hepati...
Benton CV, Brown BL, Harshman JS, Gilden RV.Equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) was successfully inoculated onto cell cultures of canine and feline origin, resulting in chronic infections in these cultures. Infection of equine cell cultures, which were the previous sole in vitro source demonstrated for virus production, was also performed for comparative purposes. Determination of the nature of the virus produced in the heterologous as well as the equine cells was accomplished in several ways. SDS-PAGE of purified virus from the different cell lines indicated very similar protein composition. Immunological identity was observed in gel...
Campbell MD, Bellamy JE, Searcy GP.The microhematocrit heat-precipitation methods of Millar et al (1971) and Schalm et al (1975) were compared with the reference clottable protein method of Ratnoff and Menzie (1951) in the measurement of plasma fibrinogen concentration in horses. The millar et al method was more precise and accurate and showed better positive correlation with the reference method than did the Schalm et al method. There was no significant difference in the plasma fibrinogen concentration between healthy Thoroughbreds and healthy horses of other breeds. Horses with bacterial pneumonia and abscesses had significan...
Papkoff H.The objectives of this paper are to review the chemical and biological properties of equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG, PMSG) isolated from the serum. Comparisons are made with eCG isolated from endometrial cups, trophoblast cell culture medium, and low titer serum. The results show that eCG can vary, depending on the source, in both chemical and biological (LH and FSH activity) properties.
Ginther OJ.After the cessation of equine embryo mobility (fixation) on mean Day 16, the embryonic vesicle is rotated or oriented so that the pole with the embryo proper is opposite to the mesometrial attachment. Orientation involves massage of the vesicle by contractions of the turgid uterine horn and greater thickening of the vesicle at the pole with the embryo proper. Thickening of the dorsal endometrium (encroachment) especially on each side of the mesometrial attachment accounts for a guitar-pick shape of the vesicle when viewed in cross section of the uterine horn. On Days 21-40, the allantoic sac e...
Huricha , Kawai M, Inose Y, Yamada F, Ninomiya S.In this study, we investigated maternal effects on the growth of Hokkaido native horses kept outdoors throughout the year. We used the data on body weight (BW), height at withers (HW), heart girth (HG), and cannon circumference (CC) of 517 foals during the first year of life to (1) examine the growth patterns by comparing six linear mixed models and (2) analyze the maternal effect on BW, HW, HG, and CC for each month by estimating variance components. The segmented polynomial third-order regression equation was selected as the best model for all the traits. The estimated proportion of variance...
Hartikka P, Dahlbom M, Westermarck H.In four training stables five trotter horses of the Finnish coldblooded breed and seven warmblooded trotters were treated with a ferrissaccharin preparation (Hippiron, Hausmann) intravenously. A short increase in heart frequency after the injection was noted. The cold solution injections, less than + 15 degrees C, may cause dangerous reactions. All horses showed an enhanced appetite, a substantially livier habitus after treatment.
Mouncey R, Arango-Sabogal JC, de Mestre AM, Foote AK, Verheyen KL.Enhanced understanding of reasons for, and timings of, mortality in Thoroughbreds prior to entering race training is warranted to provide insight into this population's health status. The aims of this study were to describe pathologies diagnosed at post-mortem (PM) examination in Thoroughbreds aged from birth to 18 months and investigate associations between age and pathology. Reports from a pathology laboratory in Newmarket, UK, were used to identify eligible cases examined between January 2006 and December 2020. Reported pathologies were extracted and categorised where appropriate. Comorbidi...
Joyner LP, Donnelly J, Huck RA.The results of complement fixation (CF) test for equine piroplasmosis on sera from horses destined for international movement from Great Britain and Ireland are presented and analysed. No horses born and continuously resident in the British Isles were found carrying CF antibodies to either Babesia equi or B caballi. Positive animals were found to have association with the following countries where known tick vectors occur: Spain, Portugal, Belgium, France, Poland, USSR and Arabian Gulf countries. Data on the persistence of CF antibodies in animals subjected to repeated testing showed that some...
Klugh DO.A 5-month-old quarter horse filly was presented for evaluation of a congenital overbite. The horse was diagnosed with a class 2 malocclusion. A non-removable, acrylic bite plane was constructed to provide a surface for the occlusal forces to be directed in a manner maintaining the normal anatomic position of the premaxilla. The preservation of normal anatomic relationships provided free range of motion of the mandible and maximized its growth potential, limiting the malocclusion. Although normal occlusion was not attained, partial incisor occlusion was present 20-months following initial treat...
Brand A, Lindner A, Gerhards H, Valenchon M, Petit O.The objective of this study was to explore how the endurance of five-year-old horses, kept out on pasture all their life and ridden for the first time well into their fifth year of age, developed within one year and compared to that of six-year-old horses raised under the same conditions and to other horses. Horses were submitted to a standardized exercise test (SET) to calculate their v (velocity run under defined conditions inducing 4 mmol/L of blood lactate concentration (LA)) and v (velocity run under defined conditions inducing a heart rate of 180 beats/min). The test consisted of up to ...
Ferrer MS, Canisso IF, Podico G, Ellerbrock RE, Hurley DJ, Palomares R.Different stallions exhibit a high level of variation in the ability of their sperm to survive cryopreservation. A large fraction of stallions show poor post-thaw sperm motility, and their semen is not suitable for commercial freezing. In this study, we hypothesized that the presence of sperm-bound antisperm antibodies (ASAs) was associated with poor cryosurvival of stallion sperm. Our objective was to assess the level of ASA binding to stallion sperm, and determine if it was associated with good or poor sperm cryosurvival. In Experiment 1, cooled shipped semen from 27 stallions was frozen usi...
Lee J, Shin D, Kim H.Thoroughbred horses have been bred exclusively for racing in England for a long time. Additionally, because horse racing is a global sport, a healthy leisure activity for ordinary citizens, and a high-value business, systematic racehorse breeding at the population level is a requirement for continuous industrial development. Therefore, we established genomic evaluation system (using prize money as horse racing traits) to produce spirited, agile, and strong racing horse population. Methods: We used phenotypic data from 25,061 Thoroughbred horses (all registered individuals in Korea) that compet...
Hackett ES, Bruemmer J, Hendrickson DA, McCue PM.Description-An 11-year-old Quarter Horse stallion was admitted for intermittent hemospermia of 4 years' duration. Results: A linear vertical defect had been detected endoscopically following multiple episodes of hemospermia on the caudodorsal convex surface of the urethra at the level of the ischial arch. Results: When sexual rest alone did not result in complete healing of the urethral defect, a subischial urethrotomy and buccal mucosal urethroplasty were performed. The surgical site healed without complication. Four months of sexual rest was recommended after surgery. Repeat endoscopy at 4 m...
Warnock WR, Marsh CA, Hand DR.The purpose of this study was to report long-term outcome following arthroscopic debridement of articular cartilage lesions of the distal interphalangeal joint, diagnosed with high-field magnetic resonance imaging. Diagnosis was based on the results of diagnostic anesthesia, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and arthroscopy. Ten horses underwent arthroscopic evaluation for cartilage injury and received various intra-articular therapies after surgery. Three of ten horses had lesions that were surgically inaccessible. Four horses became sound and returned to their preoperative level of athletici...
Pruett HE, Thompson DL, Cartmill JA, Williams CC, Gentry LR.Light horse mares, stallions, and geldings were used to 1) extend our observations on the thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH) inhibition of GH secretion in response to physiologic stimuli and 2) test the hypothesis that stimulation of endogenous TRH would decrease the normal rate of GH secretion. In Exp. 1 and 2, pretreatment of mares with TRH (10 microg/kg BW) decreased (P < 0.001) the GH response to exercise and aspartate infusion. Time analysis in Exp. 3 indicated that the TRH inhibition lasted at least 60 min but was absent by 120 min. Administration of a single injection of TRH to stal...
Hughes KJ, Rendle DI, Higgins S, Barron R, Cowling A, Love S, Durham AE.Delays between collection and laboratory analysis of equine body fluid samples are common in practice; however, the effects of delays on the accuracy of results and diagnostic interpretation are unknown. Objective: To assess the effects of storage time and temperature combination on protein and cell parameters of equine synovial and mesothelial cavity fluids and determine whether any changes affect clinicopathological interpretation. Methods: In vitro experiment. Methods: Body fluid samples obtained from horses during diagnostic investigation were divided into 7 aliquots and total protein conc...
Tennent-Brown BS, Morrice AV, Reed S.Neonatal encephalopathy is the most common neurologic condition affecting newborn foals and shares similarities with perinatal asphyxia syndrome of human infants. In many cases of neonatal encephalopathy there is no obvious episode of acute or chronic hypoxia and other mechanisms likely play a role in the pathogenesis. Increased concentrations of neuroactive progestagens are found in affected foals; whether these molecules are protective, as has been suggested, or play a role in the pathogenesis is unknown. Neurologic diseases other than neonatal encephalopathy affect foals occasionally and sh...
Caston SS, Reinertson EL.Musculoskeletal disorders comprise a large portion of the conditions treated by equine veterinarians. Surgical intervention is the treatment of choice in many cases. The body of literature describing and exploring surgical correction of musculoskeletal disorders in horses is steadily growing but still lacking. At this juncture, we can use what information we have with the understanding that as the quality of research advances, we should apply stricter standards to the evidence we use to answer our clinical questions.
Bester RC, Coetzer JA.A case of granulomatous enteritis in a 2 year-old Thoroughbred colt is reported. Clinically the horse showed chronic wasting and subcutaneous oedema of the ventral parts of the body and legs. Grossly the wall of the jejunum and ileum was uniformly thickened. Microscopically the lamina propria, submucosa and the tunica muscalaris of the small intestine were infiltrated with lymphocytes, plasma cells, epithelioid cells and occasional multinucleated giant cells. The granulomatous reaction was most marked in the muscular layers of the gut wall.
