Veterinary care in horses encompasses the medical and preventive measures taken to maintain and improve the health and well-being of equine patients. It includes a wide range of practices such as routine health examinations, vaccinations, dental care, parasite control, and management of injuries and diseases. Veterinary care also involves diagnostic procedures, surgical interventions, and therapeutic treatments tailored to the specific needs of horses. This page gathers peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore various aspects of equine veterinary care, including advancements in diagnostic techniques, treatment protocols, and health management strategies to support the well-being and performance of horses.
Bramlage LR, Gabel AA, Hackett RP.Five horses with avulsion fractures of the proximal origin of the suspensory ligament were examined for lameness. The horses in the series each had lameness of acute onset; four were severely lame, and one was moderately lame. The condition was difficult to diagnose because commonly used local anesthetic blocks did not result in improvement during the routine examination. Local infiltration of the area with local anesthetic returned the horses to soundness. After a period of rest, varying from a few weeks in the acute injury to 6 months in the chronic injuries, the horses were returned to raci...
Houghton E, Dumasia MC.1. The metabolism of 19-nor[4-14C]testosterone in a thoroughbred horse has been studied and neutral urinary metabolites obtained after enzyme hydrolysis have been investigated by g.l.c.-mass spectrometry. 2. 3-Hydroxyestran-17-one, 17 alpha- and 17 beta-nortestosterone, estrane-3,17-diol (two isomers), 3,16-dihydroxyestran-17-one (two isomers), 3,17-dihydroxyestran-16-one (two isomers) and estrane-3,16,17-triol were identified in the neutral urinary extracts.
Gabel AA.Since horses ridden at a gallop have a high incidence of bone spavin, and harness horses (Standardbred pacers and trotters) have a different
syndrome, they will be discussed separately. Osteoarthritis (bone spavin) apparently is caused by impact and compression on the distal tarsal
bones, which occurs most forcefully at the gallop (canter). Shear stresses, which occur in the joint between these bones, are most severe at the trot
or pace, and probably cause the usual cunean-tarsitis problem in
Standardbreds. Obviously some of each force occurs at each gait.
Arnbjerg J.With reference to previous reports on hypocalcemia in horses special attention is given to the principal symptoms such as anxiety, increased muscular tension, esp. of the musculature of the extremities, in severe cases leading to ataxia, and to a pulse-synchronized respiration (Synchronous Diaphragmatic Flutter). The time of appearance of the symptoms are much more variable than it is the case for hypocalcemic agalactia in cows. Furthermore the condition has been reported in foals as well as in geldings. Thus the triggering factor seems to be somewhat different from that of agalactia. Hypocalc...
Downing DT, Colton SW.Skin surface lipids from the sides of male and female horses (Equus caballus) were collected in acetone and analyzed by thin layer chromatography and gas liquid chromatography. The sole components in both sexes were cholesterol, cholesteryl esters and the lactones of 32-, 32- and 36-carbon omega-hydroxy acids, each including a methyl group in the n-1 position. Most of the lactones were monounsaturated (either n-8 or n-10), but small amounts of saturated and dienoic species were present. A pooled sample of the skin surface lipids contained 14% cholesterol, 38% cholesteryl esters and 48% lactone...
Roberts MC, Kelly WR.Granulomatous enteritis was diagnosed in a 4-year-old Standarbred mare suffering from chronic weight loss, depression, dependent oedema but not diarrhoea. There was hypoproteinaemia (hypoalbuminaemia), lymphocytopaenia and neglibible carbohydrate absorption from the small intestine. Pathological changes in almost the entire small intestine included proprial infiltration resulting in partial villous atrophy, and granuloma formation beneath the muscularis which was most severe in the ileum. Slight infiltration occurred in the stomach and the colon. The cells were predominantly lymphocytes and hi...
Fernie DS, Batty I, Walker PD, Platt H, Mackintosh ME, Simpson DJ.The vaccination of four ponies on two occasions with a formolised culture of Haemophilus equigenitalis produced a high circulating antibody titre to the organism in each pony. Three out of four vaccinated and all of three unvaccinated ponies developed typical symptoms of contagious equine metritis (CEM) when subsequently challenged with a vaginal exudate containing H equigenitalis. Similarly, three ponies which had previously been infected with H equigenitalis and which had recovered spontaneously also developed contagious equine metritis when rechallenged with the organism. The clinical and b...
Miller R, Pott B.A case of subcutaneous phycomycosis of a horse from which Basidiobolus haptosporu was isolated is described. Although some clinical signs were similar to the disease caused by Hyphomyces destruens, the gross and microscopic pathology were different in several respects. Main characteristics of the histopathology were the narrow eosinophilic sleeve around wide, frequently septate hyphae scattered throughout the affected tissue and found commonly at the advancing border of the lesion. A retrospective study of 63 cases of phycomycosis diagnosed at this laboratory since 1970 indicated a further 11 ...
Auer J.Degenerative joint disease is the most frequently diagnosed problem of the carpus. Horses afflicted with this disease should not be injected with corticosteroids, but should be rested for several months. Swimming exercise and intra-articular injections of hyaluronic acid during this time help to restore the integrity of the involved joints. Chip fractures of the various carpal bones and the distal radius are commonly diagnosed as the cause of the lameness. Not all horses with carpal fractures are candidates for surgery. It is important that the severity of the problem be realized and that the ...
Benedetti B, Felici M, Thiébaud G, Freccero F, Padalino B.This study aimed to describe equine transportation practices and transport-related behavioural and health problems in Switzerland and to identify possible associations between them. An online survey was disseminated to Swiss equine industry members and questioned respondents' details, transport practices (before, during, and after journeys), horse transport-related behavioural (TRPBs) and health problems (TRHPs) experienced in the previous 2 years. The survey generated 441 valid responses, analysed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression models (outcomes: TRPBs, TRHPs, injuries, d...
Monzón CM.An indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect antibodies against Trypanosoma evansi was evaluated using 90 different sera, obtained from naturally-infected horses. As negative controls, 218 sera from the T. evansi-free zone of Argentina, and 90 uninfected sera from the enzootic zone were used. The results of the ELISA were expressed in terms of percent positivity (PP) when compared with a positive primary reference serum, obtained from a horse experimentally-infected with T. evansi. The inter-assay coefficient of variation (CV), expressed as PP, was 44.7% for the negative con...
Stadler P.The anterior enteritis syndrome in the horse is reviewed with reference to the aetiology, pathogenesis, clinical findings, laboratory findings, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis and post mortem findings.