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.
Muscatello G, Gilkerson JR, Browning GF.The use of selective media to facilitate the isolation of Rhodococcus equi from environmental and clinical samples has aided studies of the ecology of R. equi and the epidemiology of disease caused by R. equi. Here, we compared the efficacy of two selective media (NANAT and modified CAZ-NB) for the recovery of six defined strains of R. equi and for the isolation and enumeration of both avirulent and virulent R. equi from 60 paired soil samples from horse farms using colony blotting and DNA hybridisation. No difference was found between the two media in the recoverability of defined strains of ...
Maurer P.The first part of this paper gives a short historical survey of veterinary medicine in India starting from vedic times. The knowledge about hippiatry was highly valued since horses played an important role in warfare. The review of authors and publications on Indian hippiatry and hippology is followed by a synopsis on these traditions in Europe. The second part of this article includes further references and research on the Aśvaśăstra of Nakula and a translation of chapter 4 describing the anatomy of the horse.
Darghouth MA.Several species of piroplasms of livestock are present in Tunisia; some of them are of high veterinary importance. This paper reviews the species already reported in Tunisia on the basis of clinical observations, parasitological routine diagnostic and serological surveys, as well as those considered as potentially present according to epidemiological argumentations. The genus Theileria includes four species reported in Tunisia: T. annulata, T. buffeli, T. ovis, and T. equi. The ovine malignant theileriosis agent, T. lestoquardi, appears to be absent in Tunisia. Five species belonging to the ge...
Roig M, Segura J, Ventura R.A method to quantify metabolites of 17beta-nandrolone (17betaN) in boar and horse urine has been optimized and validated. Metabolites excreted in free form were extracted at pH 9.5 with tert-butylmethylether. The aqueous phases were applied to Sep Pak C18 cartridges and conjugated steroids were eluted with methanol. After evaporation to dryness, either enzymatic hydrolysis with beta-glucuronidase from Escherichia coli or solvolysis with a mixture of ethylacetate:methanol:concentrated sulphuric acid were applied to the extract. Deconjugated steroids were then extracted at alkaline pH with tert-...
Archer DC, Pinchbeck GL, Proudman CJ, Clough HE.Colic is an important cause of mortality and morbidity in domesticated horses yet many questions about this condition remain to be answered. One such question is: does season have an effect on the occurrence of colic? Time-series analysis provides a rigorous statistical approach to this question but until now, to our knowledge, it has not been used in this context. Traditional time-series modelling approaches have limited applicability in the case of relatively rare diseases, such as specific types of equine colic. In this paper we present a modelling approach that respects the discrete nature...
Tu YB, Zhou T, Yuan XF, Qiu HJ, Xue F, Sun CQ, Wang L, Wu DL, Peng JM, Kong XG, Tong GZ.The long terminal repeats (LTRs) of equine infectious anemia virus donkey leukocyte-attenuated virus (EIAV-DLA) were substituted with those of the wild-type EIAV-L (wt EIAV-L, the parent virus of EIAV-DLA). The resulting chimeric plasmid was designated pOK-LTR DLA/L. Purified pOK-LTR DLA/L was transfected into monocyte-derived macrophage (MDM) cultures prepared from EIAV-negative, heparinized whole blood from a donkey. Eighth-passage cell cultures developed the typical cytopathogenic effects (CPE) of EIAV infection, and virions with typical EIAV profiles were observed with an electron microsco...
Black WD, Hartley CA, Ficorilli NP, Studdert MJ.Equine rhinitis B virus (ERBV), genus Erbovirus, family Picornaviridae occurs as two serotypes, ERBV1 and ERBV2. An ERBV-specific nested reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) that amplified a product within the 3D(pol) and 3' non-translated region of the viral genome was developed. The RT-PCR detected all 24 available ERBV1 isolates and one available ERBV2 isolate. The limit of detection for the prototype strain ERBV1.1436/71 was 0.1 50% tissue culture infectious doses. The RT-PCR was used to detect viral RNA in six of 17 nasopharyngeal swab samples from horses that had clin...
Lejeune JP, Schneider N, Caudron I, Duvivier DH, Serteyn D.Ossification of collateral cartilages is a common radiographic finding in draught horses and indication of a high frequency of interphalangeal osteo-arthropathy have been found in Ardenner horses. This study first aimed at following the evolution of the digits of the forelimbs on radiographic images in a group of 32 Ardenner horses from weaning to 852 +/- 19 days and, secondly, at evaluating the clinical significance of the observed radiographic changes. At 250 +/- 21 days, only 23% of the horses presented a small separate ossification centre of collateral cartilages above the level of the dis...
Jackson C, Collyer PB, Loynachan A.A stillborn full term foal was presented at necropsy. The dilated duodenum and the dorsal and ventral left colon and cecum extended into the thoracic cavity and were encased by a thin transparent membrane originating from the diaphragm. The congenital condition was diagnosed as a developmental anomaly with diaphragmatic eventration. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of diaphragmatic eventration in a Thoroughbred stillborn foal.
Danek J.Four clinically normal stallions were infused intravenously with endotoxin (LPS) from Escherichia coli 055:B5 at a dose of 0.3 microg/kg b.w. and four stallions were treated with flunixin meglumine (FM) as a single intravenous injection at a dose of 1.1 mg/kg b.w., 5 min after the infusion of LPS. In response to endotoxin infusion, stallions' reaction was fever (increased rectal and scrotal skin temperature), increased heart rate (HR) and leucopenia. Administration of endotoxin also influenced the level of testosterone (decrease at 3-24 h and increase at 48-72 h after LPS administration) in th...
Hussey SB, Clark R, Lunn KF, Breathnach C, Soboll G, Whalley JM, Lunn DP.Equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) infection is common in young horses throughout the world, resulting in respiratory disease, epidemic abortion, sporadic myelitis, or latent infections. To improve on conventional diagnostic tests for EHV-1, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was developed, using primers and probes specific for the EHV-1 gB gene. Amplification efficiencies of 100% +/- 5% were obtained for DNA isolated from a plasmid, infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), and nasal secretions from infected ponies. The dynamic range of the assay was 8 log10 dilutions,...
Waitt LH, Cebra CK, Tornquist SJ, Löhr CV.A 22-year-old pinto mixed breed mare was admitted for evaluation of severe colic signs and gastric reflux. Multiple nonpainful, variably sized hard masses were palpated in the subcutis over the thorax, abdomen, and hindquarters of the horse. The mare was diagnosed with sterile peritonitis and had systemically high gamma-glutamyltransferase, amylase, and lipase. Three days into treatment she became febrile with signs of persistent and mild abdominal discomfort; euthanasia was elected. Necropsy revealed peripancreatitis, pancreatic fibrosis, abdominal steatitis and panniculitis. Panniculitis ass...
Franck T, Kohnen S, Deby-Dupont G, Grulke S, Deby C, Serteyn D.An original method called SIEFED (specific immunological extraction followed by enzymatic detection) was developed for the specific detection of the activity of equine myeloperoxidase (MPO). The method consists of the extraction of MPO from aqueous solutions by immobilized anti-MPO antibodies followed by washing (to eliminate proteins and interfering molecules) and measurement of MPO activity using a detection system containing a fluorogenic substrate, hydrogen peroxide, and nitrite as reaction enhancer. The SIEFED technique was applied to study active MPO in horse biological fluids and the ef...
Lannergård J, Guss B.Streptococcus equi ssp. equi is the causative agent of strangles, a highly contagious and serious disease in the upper respiratory tract of horses. The present study describes the characterization of IdeE, a homolog of the secreted IgG-specific protease IdeS/Mac of Streptococcus pyogenes. The activity of IdeE is compared with the activity of IdeZ, the corresponding enzyme of the closely related S. equi ssp. zooepidemicus. A study of the proteolytic activity of recombinant IdeE and IdeZ on IgG from a selection of mammals shows that only antibodies containing the substrate site of IdeS/Mac are c...
Verheyen K, Price J, Lanyon L, Wood J.In order to gain insight into those training regimens that can minimise the risk of fracture in athletic populations, we conducted a large epidemiological study in racehorses. Thoroughbred racehorses provide a suitable model for studying fracture development and exercise-related risk factors in physically active populations. They represent a homogeneous population, undertaking intensive exercise programmes that are sufficiently heterogeneous to determine those factors that influence injury risk. Daily exercise information was recorded for a cohort of 1178 thoroughbreds that were monitored for ...
Valentine BA, Cooper BJ.Muscle samples from 24 horses with polysaccharide storage myopathy were stained with periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) stain and were immunostained for ubiquitin. Abnormalities detected with PAS stain were coarse granular cytoplasmic aggregates of amylase sensitive glycogen, subsarcolemmal aggregates of glycogen, central amylase sensitive bodies, and a variety of subsarcolemmal to intracytoplasmic amylase resistant polyglucosan inclusions. All amylase resistant inclusions were positive for ubiquitin. Ubiquitin was also detected in many amylase sensitive inclusions. Based on morphologic findings and p...
Carrieri ML, Peixoto ZM, Paciencia ML, Kotait I, Germano PM.Laboratory diagnosis is essential to confirm suspected cases of equine rabies and to determine the medical care needed for human postexposure antirabies prophylaxis. Equine rabies transmitted by the vampire bat, Desmodus rotundus, has increased gradually in the State of São Paulo. The present study has several objectives, the most important being the evaluation of fluorescent antibody test (FAT) and virus-isolation laboratory tests performed with different equine nervous system tissues (cortical, hippocampus, cerebellar, brainstem and cervical medullar) to determine the tissue for which the t...
Goodwin D, Gennari SM, Howe DK, Dubey JP, Zajac AM, Lindsay DS.Encephalitozoon cuniculi has been associated with natural cases of abortion and stillbirth in horses. However, little is known about the prevalence of this parasite in horses. We examined sera from 559 horses from Brazil for antibodies to E. cuniculi using the indirect immunofluorescent antibody (IFA) test and the direct agglutination test (DAT). We found that 79 (14.1%) were positive in the IFA test and 70 (12.5%) were positive in the DAT. Compared to the IFA as the "gold standard" the sensitivity of the DAG was 94.0% and the specificity was 96.1%. Our study indicates that horses in Brazil ar...
Eysker M, van Doorn DC, Lems SN, Weteling A, Ploeger HW.Due to excessive and inappropriate use of dewormers anthelmintic resistance has developed as a significant problem in horse parasites in the Netherlands. Since it is unlikely that new classes of anthelmintics against horse nematodes will be introduced in the near future, it is important to use the present drugs wisely. Veterinarians should advice horse owners about worm control programs with a more targeted approach. The number of anthelmintic treatments should be reduced and, through selective anthelmintic treatments, further development of anthelmintic resistance should be delayed. Preferabl...
Schultz CL, Lodge-Ivey SL, Bush LP, Craig AM, Strickland JR.To determine the amount of ergovaline and lysergic acid retained or excreted by geldings fed endophyte-infected seed containing known concentrations of these alkaloids, and the effects of exposure time on clinical expression of toxicosis. Methods: Mature geldings (n=10) received diets containing either endophyte-free (E-) or endophyte-infected (E+) tall fescue seed during three experimental phases. The first phase (Days -14 to -1) was an adaptation phase, to allow all horses to adapt to a diet containing E- tall fescue seed. The second (Days 0 to 3) was the initial exposure phase to E+ tall fe...
Smith RL, Perkins NR, Firth EC, Anderson BH.To determine whether trauma to the larynx caused by nasotracheal intubation induced mucosal ulceration of the arytenoid cartilages of adult horses, and to determine the incidence of such ulceration in yearling Thoroughbred horses and its effect on athletic performance. Methods: Laryngeal trauma was induced in a group of 21 adult horses by introduction of a nasogastric tube into the trachea three times within 5 min. Injury to the arytenoid cartilages or vocal cords was subjectively assessed immediately after intubation, and thereafter at weekly intervals for 10 weeks. The outcome and athletic p...
McKinney AR, Suann CJ, Stenhouse AM.An investigation was conducted into the stereochemistry of the equine urinary metabolites of 17alpha-methyltestosterone observed after oral administration. Standards of the complete range of C3/C5/C16 stereoisomeric 17alpha-methylandrostane-3,17beta-diols, 17alpha-methylandrostane-3,16,17beta-triols and 17alpha-hydroxymethylandrostane-3,17beta-diols were purchased or synthesised, and were used to unequivocally identify the absolute structures of the metabolites. Phase I metabolism was found to involve combinations of Delta(4)-3-ketone reduction with both 5alpha,3beta- and 5beta,3alpha-stereoch...
Lykkesfeldt J, Svendsen O.Important infectious diseases in farm animals, such as pneumonia and enteritis, are thought to be associated with the so-called oxidative stress, i.e. a chemical phenomenon involving an imbalance in the redox status of the individual animal. The specifics of oxidative stress and how it may result in disease or be prevented are complex questions with no simple answers. However, the considerable literature on the subject suggests that many researchers consider oxidative stress-related mechanisms to be important early events in disease development. A particularly intriguing aspect is that, at lea...
Root Kustritz MV, Chenoweth PJ, Tibary A.To determine whether veterinarians perceive that theriogenology training at veterinary medical schools in North America and the Caribbean is adequate for achievement of theriogenology skills commonly used in private practice. Methods: A survey was mailed to members of the veterinary medical associations of Alabama, Kansas, Pennsylvania, and Washington. With regard to reproductive procedures in bovine, equine, porcine, small ruminant, camelid, and small animal species, veterinarians (predominantly practitioners) were asked to rate the importance of that procedure in their job and to assess thei...
Schaaf KL, Kannegieter NJ, Lovell DK.A Warmblood horse presented with a purulent nasal discharge that had failed to respond to antibiotic therapy. Radiography and endoscopy confirmed a large number of chondroid masses (over 200) in the left guttural pouch. Despite the large number of chondroids present, there was no external swelling evident. The masses were surgically removed via a hyovertebrotomy approach that provided excellent exposure, and no postoperative complications were encountered. Long term follow-up (3 years) confirmed a successful outcome.
Goh G, Raudsepp T, Durkin K, Wagner ML, Schäffer AA, Agarwala R, Tozaki T, Mickelson JR, Chowdhary BP.High-resolution physically ordered gene maps for equine homologs of human chromosome 5 (HSA5), viz., horse chromosomes 14 and 21 (ECA14 and ECA21), were generated by adding 179 new loci (131 gene-specific and 48 microsatellites) to the existing maps of the two chromosomes. The loci were mapped primarily by genotyping on a 5000-rad horse x hamster radiation hybrid panel, of which 28 were mapped by fluorescence in situ hybridization. The approximately fivefold increase in the number of mapped markers on the two chromosomes improves the average resolution of the map to 1 marker/0.9 Mb. The improv...
Holcombe SJ, Rodriguez K, Lane J, Caron JP.To determine (1) if the cricothyroid muscle had respiratory-related electromyographic (EMG) activity that increased with respiratory effort and (2) if bilateral cricothyroid myotomy resulted in vocal fold instability and collapse in exercising horses. Methods: Experimental. Methods: Seven (3 EMG; 4 cricothyroid myotomy) Standardbred horses. Methods: Three horses exercised on a treadmill at speeds corresponding to the speed that produced maximum heart rate (HR(max)), 75% of maximum heart rate (HR(75%max)), and 50% of maximum heart rate (HR(50%max)) for 60 seconds at each speed while EMG activit...
Kuisma P, Andersson M, Koskinen E, Katila T.The aim of the project was to use current simple and practical laboratory tests and compare results with the foaling rates of mares inseminated with commercially produced frozen semen. In Exp. 1, semen was tested from 27 and in Exp. 2 from 23 stallions; 19 stallions participated in both experiments. The mean number of mares per stallion in both experiments was 37 (min. 7, max. 121). Sperm morphology was assessed and bacterial culture performed once per stallion. In Exp. 1, progressive motility after 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 h of incubation using light microscopy, motility characteristics measured wit...
Foster CV, Harris RC.There was no detectable loss of total carnitine associated with intense exercise from the middle gluteal muscle of Thoroughbred horses. Measurements made on a single biopsy obtained during the course of a normal training and exercise programme may, therefore, be considered representative of the normal content at rest. The variability in total carnitine content within the normal muscle biopsy area amounted to 13.2 per cent of the normal mean content. Approximately 50 per cent of this variability could be attributed to covariation with citrate synthase, to which it was highly significantly corre...
Biggi M, Dyson S.The distribution of lesions detected using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of hind feet has not been reported. Objective: To evaluate type and distribution of lesions detected using MRI in hind feet of lame horses and to compare the findings with those reported in front feet; to document follow-up information. Methods: Horses were selected if hindlimb lameness was abolished by plantar nerve blocks performed at the base of the proximal sesamoid bones. Magnetic resonance images were acquired using either a low-field or a high-field magnet, and all images were evaluated retrospectively by both a...
Manohar M.Strenuously exercising Thoroughbreds exhibit a dramatic increase in pulmonary capillary blood pressure, which contributes to stress failure of pulmonary capillaries resulting in exercise induced pulmonary haemorrhage (EIPH). One strategy to prevent EIPH is, therefore, to lower the pulmonary capillary blood pressure of exercising horses. Recent work in several species suggests that nitric oxide plays a significant role in maintaining low vascular resistance in the pulmonary circulation; however, the effects of nitrovasodilators (which work via the same mechanism as nitric oxide) on equine pulmo...
Kennedy T, Campbell J, Selzer V.Ponazuril, a triazine-derivative compound, is proposed as a treatment for equine protozoal myeloencephalitis caused by Sarcocystis neurona. Ponazuril 15% oral paste was administered to 24 horses at 0, 10, or 30 mg/kg body weight for either 28 or 56 days, representing zero, two, and six times the proposed dosage rate and one and two times the recommended duration of treatment, respectively. Serum chemistry analysis, coagulation profile, and hematology measurements were performed weekly and necropsy evaluations, including histopathology, were conducted for all animals at the end of the study. Mi...
Beaudry F, Vachon P.Glucosamine is an amino sugar involved in the biosynthesis of glycosylated proteins and lipids. Recently, with increased public interest in natural products medicine, glucosamine has been widely used to treat osteoarthritis, even though demonstrations of its actual efficacy remain relatively unknown. Information related to the pharmcokinetics of glucosamine is sparse. A recent analytical method published used 13C-glucosamine as an internal standard to analyse study samples. The method lacked accuracy owing to an important natural isotopic contribution of glucosamine to 13C-glucosamine ion abun...
Bauer JE, Ransone WD.Alterations in the fatty acid distribution of total lipid extracts and 4 of the major lipid subclasses of serum in ponies fasted overnight and for 4 and 7 days were determined. Although increases in 16:0, 16:1, and 18:3 omega 3 were observed, decreased amounts of 18:0 and 18:2 omega 6 combined to cause no significant change in the saturated to unsaturated fatty acid ratio in the total extracts. Phospholipid became somewhat preferentially enriched in saturated fatty acids due to a decrease in 18:1, although this response was variable. The free fatty acid and triglyceride fractions both showed i...
Bistner SI, Riis RC.Several manifestations of equine corenal ulcers caused by mycotic agents are discussed. Antifungal therapy is reviewed. Mycotic keratitis should be suspected when routine corneal ulcer therapy is nonproductive.
Nelson DM, Gardner IA, Chiles RF, Balasuriya UB, Eldridge BF, Scott TW, Reisen WK, Maclachlan NJ.Jamestown Canyon (JC) and Saint Louis encephalitis (SLE) viruses are mosquito-transmitted viruses that have long been present in California. The objective of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of these two viruses in horses prior to the introduction of West Nile (WN) virus. Approximately 15% of serum samples collected in 1998 from 425 horses on 44 equine operations horses throughout California had serum antibodies to JC virus, whereas antibodies were not detected to SLE virus. The results indicate that horses in California were commonly infected prior to 1998 with mosquito-transmit...
Grubb TL, Högman M, Edner A, Frendin JH, Heinonen E, Malavasi LM, Frostell CG, Ryden A, Alving K, Nyman GC.To assess physiologic responses and plasma endothelin (ET)-1 concentrations associated with abrupt cessation of nitric oxide (NO) inhalation in isoflurane-anesthetized horses. Methods: 6 healthy adult Standardbreds. Methods: Horses were anesthetized with isoflurane in oxygen and placed in dorsal recumbency. Nitric oxide was pulsed into the respiratory tract for 2.5 hours, and then administration was abruptly discontinued. Just prior to commencement and at cessation of NO administration, and at intervals during a 30-minute period following cessation of NO inhalation, several variables including...
Sullivan SN, Cole SL, Stewart MC, Brokken MT, Durgam S.To investigate the effects of triamcinolone acetonide (TA) and methylprednisolone acetate (MPA) on the viability of resident cells within the fibrocartilage on the dorsal surface of the deep digital flexor tendon (FC-DDFT) and fibrocartilage on the flexor surface of the navicular bone (FC-NB) of horses. Methods: 12 to 14 explants of FC-DDFT and of FC-NB from grossly normal forelimbs of 5 cadavers of horses aged 9 to 15 years without evidence of musculoskeletal disease. Methods: Explants were incubated with culture medium (control) or TA-supplemented (0.6 or 6 mg/mL) or MPA-supplemented (0.5 or...
Kriz NG, Hodgson DR, Rose RJ.To investigate the effects of deconditioning on cardiac dimensions and indices of cardiac function in horses. Methods: Thirteen 3-to 4-year-old Standardbred geldings. Methods: All horses had echocardiographic measurements performed at the conclusion of 9 months of intense training and at weeks 1.5, 4, 8, and 12 of deconditioning. Direct echocardiographic measurements included interventricular septal thickness, left ventricular internal dimensions, left ventricular freewall thickness, left atrial dimension, aortic diameter, diameter of the pulmonary artery, slopes of the mitral valve, heart rat...
Ipiña Z, Lussier JG, Theoret CL.To clone full-length equine pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) complementary DNA (cDNA) and to evaluate its temporal expression during repair of wounds in horses. Methods: 4 clinically normal 2-to 3-year-old Standardbred mares. Methods: Full-length equine PEDF cDNA was cloned by screening size-selected cDNA libraries derived from biopsy specimens obtained from the wound edge 7 days after experimental creation of a 6.25-cm(2) full-thickness wound in the skin of the lateral thoracic wall. Expression was evaluated in normal skin and in biopsy specimens obtained weekly from experimentally in...
WIDE M, WIDE L.THE use of a hæmagglutination inhibition reaction for the diagnosis of pregnancy in women was reported by Wide and Gemzell1 and Wide2. In this reaction human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) inhibited the agglutination of stable HCG-coated blood cells. The same immunological technique was applied for the assay of pregnant mare serum gonadotrophin (PMS) and was used as a pregnancy diagnosis test in mares. Sera from pregnant mares containing elevated levels of gonadotrophin inhibited an agglutination reaction of PMS-coated formalinized erythrocytes in the presence of PMS anti-serum, while sera fro...
Gorman PW, Collins DN.Presented is the third known case of a group C streptococcal arthritis, this case documented in a healthy 42-year-old horse trainer, apparently transmitted by a mare. After a delayed diagnosis, the patient responded favorably to surgical drainage and parenteral penicillin G, but required a manipulation of his knee under general anesthesia. Although rare, group C streptococcal arthritis can occur in hosts with no apparent predisposing factors. Frequent exposure to farm animals may increase the risk.
Dong J, Cook FR, Haga T, Horii Y, Norimine J, Misawa N, Goto Y, Zhu W.Although equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) poses a major threat to the equine industry worldwide, the molecular epidemiology of this virus is poorly understood. Recently, an EIAV strain (EIAVMiyazaki2011-A) representing a new monophyletic group was discovered in feral horses in southern Japan. In the present study, the EIAVMiyazaki2011-A proviral genome is compared with evolutionarily divergent EIAV isolates to investigate conservation of functional elements or motifs within the long terminal repeats (LTRs) and structural genes. This analysis represents a significant step forward in increa...
Ginther OJ, Griffin PG.The natural outcome of bilateral twins (one in each uterine horn) that were viable on Day 40 was studied in 15 pony mares. Fetuses were monitored by transrectal ultrasonography until the outcome was determinable. One fetus (2 mares) or both fetuses (8 mares) died (cessation of heartbeats) during Months 2 and 3. Loss of fetuses was externally observed in 4 additional mares during the late fetal stage (Months 8 to 11); 2 mares lost 1 fetus and 2 lost both fetuses. Birth of 2 live foals occurred in only 1 of 15 mares (7%) First day of detected apposition between portions of the 2 allantochorions ...
Belknap JK, Baxter GM, Nickels FA.Medical records of 50 horses with extensor tendon lacerations affecting 53 limbs over 7 years (1982 to 1988) were reviewed to determine the clinical features and prognosis for athletic soundness after treatment. Mean and median ages were 4.8 and 3 years, respectively. Eighty-nine percent of the injuries involved the hind limbs, with approximately equal distribution between the right and left limbs. Hind limb lacerations involved the long digital extensor tendon (28 limbs), lateral digital extensor tendon (3 limbs), or both tendons (16 limbs). Forelimb lacerations involved the common digital ex...
Samitz EM, Biberstein EL.Thirty-seven local isolates of Actinobacillus suis-like organisms from diseased and clinically normal horses and 1 llama were compared with reference strains of A suis, A lignieresii, A equuli, A capsulatus, A hominis, A (Pasteurella) ureae, and equine A suis-like organisms (ASLO) previously described in literature. Comparison was by cultural characteristics, carbohydrate fermentation, enzyme profiles, and whole-cell protein polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Carbohydrate fermentation, determined by API-CH gallery, divided 36 equine ASLO isolates into 6 API-CH biotypes. The llama isolate was ...
Newcombe JR, Cuervo-Arango J.One hundred and fifty-four mares were inseminated with fresh semen either during the pre- or post-ovulatory periods at different intervals relative to ovulation: 36-24 h (n = 17) and 24-0 h (n = 30) before ovulation; 0-8 h (n = 21), 8-16 h (n = 24), 16-24 h (n = 48) and 24-32 h (n = 14) h after ovulation. All mares received the same routine post-mating treatment consisting of an intrauterine infusion with 1 litre of saline and antibiotics followed 8 h later by an intravenous administration of oxytocin. Artificial inseminations (AI) from 36 h before ovulation up to 16 h post-ovulation were perf...
Dups JN, Morton JM, Anthony ND, Dwyer JF.This report describes the clinical signs of equine influenza (EI) during an epidemic in a closed, predominantly immunologically naïve population of horses. It included 254 study horses, few of which exhibited all three signs of pyrexia, nasal discharge and cough simultaneously. We conclude that although the majority of affected horses exhibit temperature patterns resembling those most often described in the published literature, clinicians should be aware that other profiles are quite common.
Wilsher S, Rigali F, Kovacsy S, Allen WT.Successful vitrification of equine expanded blastocysts requires collapse of the blastocoele cavity using a micromanipulator-mounted biopsy pipette on an inverted microscope. Such equipment is expensive and requires user skill. Objective: To develop a manual method of blastocoele collapse prior to vitrification using commercial products. Methods: In vivo experiment. Methods: Seventy-nine Day 7 or 8 embryos were measured and graded. Twenty were vitrified following micromanipulator-assisted puncture and aspiration before being used to validate commercial human vitrification and warming kits cont...
García Liñeiro JA, Graziotti GH, Rodríguez Menéndez JM, Ríos CM, Affricano NO, Victorica CL.The epaxial muscles produce intervertebral rotation in the transverse, vertical and axial axes. These muscles also counteract the movements induced by gravitational and inertial forces and movements produced by antagonistic muscles and the intrinsic muscles of the pelvic limb. Their fascicles are innervated by the dorsal branch of the spinal nerve, which corresponds to the metamere of its cranial insertion in the spinous process. The structure allows the function of the muscles to be predicted: those with long and parallel fibres have a shortening function, whereas the muscles with short and o...
Bonsembiante F, Perazzi A, Deganello A, Gelain ME, Iacopetti I.The cytobrush technique is commonly used to sample the equine ocular surface. Impression cytology (IC) is an innovative noninvasive method, which allows for the collection of superficial layers of ocular epithelium. Objective: The aims of this study were to compare the cytobrush and IC techniques on healthy equine ocular surfaces, to assess the agreement between observers with different levels of expertise, and to test the preservability of filters over time. Methods: Twenty-four horses were sampled within 10 minutes of slaughter using IC on the left eye and the cytobrush technique on the rig...
Raekallio M, Vainio O, Scheinin M.Single doses of the alpha 2-adrenergic sedative-analgesic drug, detomidine (10 micrograms/kg, n = 7; 20 micrograms/kg, n = 9), were administered IV to adult horses. Plasma concentrations of adrenaline, noradrenaline, the catecholamine metabolites 3,4-dihydroxyphenylglycol (DHPG) and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), and cortisol were determined before the medication and 30 minutes after it. The plasma concentrations of noradrenaline and the catecholamine metabolites decreased significantly after administration of both 10 micrograms/kg and 20 micrograms/kg of detomidine. Plasma adrenaline...
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...
Anderson FL, Secombe CJ, Lester GD.A 9-year-old Thoroughbred gelding was presented for swelling over the left neck and inappetence. There was recent history of intramuscular administration of flunixin meglumine into the left neck. On examination, there was evidence of focal myositis, anaemia, haemolysis and pigmenturia. Culture of aspirated fluid from the left side of the neck produced a heavy growth of a Clostridium species. Complications of infection included haemolytic anaemia, hepatopathy, osteitis and transient hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Treatment included intravenous fluid therapy, antibiotics, anti-inflammatory drugs, ...
Orsini JA, Sepesy L, Donawick WJ, McDevitt D.A mare was examined for episodic choking and an abscess in the perilaryngeal region. One month before referral, the mass progressively enlarged, causing esophageal choking. An extraluminal compression of the esophagus 90 cm from the external nares was found on endoscopy and contrast radiography. Serosanguinous fluid aspirated from the mass contained keratinized squamous cells and neutrophils, compatible with an esophageal cyst. Surgical exploration was performed, with incomplete surgical excision. The remaining portion of the cyst was marsupialized and treated locally with a 2% inorganic iodin...
Hess-Dudan F, Vacher PY, Bruckmaier RM, Weishaupt MA, Burger D, Blum JW.Concentration of (total) globulin was relatively stable in blood plasma of mares, but rapidly decreased in colostrum to very low levels within 2 days after parturition. In foals, after intake of the first colostrum, globulin increased within 1 day in blood plasma, but remained at lower concentrations than those measured in mare plasma. Concentrations of immunoreactive insulin (iI) were high during the first 2 months of lactation in blood plasma of mares and then decreased, were high in first colostrum and then decreased drastically, and remained at low concentrations up to weaning in blood of ...
