Veterinary research in horses encompasses the study of diseases, health management, and medical treatments specific to equine species. This field investigates various aspects of horse health, including infectious diseases, metabolic disorders, and musculoskeletal conditions. Researchers focus on understanding the pathophysiology of equine ailments, developing diagnostic tools, and evaluating therapeutic interventions. The study of horse health also involves examining preventive measures such as vaccination protocols and nutritional management to promote overall well-being. This page collects peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the diverse areas of veterinary science related to horses, providing insights into disease mechanisms, treatment strategies, and advancements in equine healthcare.
Bertone AL, Reinemeyer C, Tsaprailis G, Ragland D, Leise B.The use of micro-particulate allografts is rising, but knowledge about the protein characterization and biocompatibility of umbilical cord-derived allografts (UC) in vivo is limited. Methods: Proteomic analyses using mass spectrometry (MS) determined equine UC protein relative quantification and functions using total spectral counts (TSC). UC cytokines were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Three in vivo studies assessed recipient clinical and tissue biocompatibility in joints and ligaments. Results: Proteomics revealed 2645 annotated TSCs. Proteins of > 89 TSC we...
Schild CO, Nyaoke A, Asin J, Henderson EE, Blea JA, Stover SM, Uzal FA.Radial fractures are relatively uncommon (0-1%) injuries in postmortem studies of racehorses, and few cases have been published. We describe here a series of 42 cases of radial fractures observed in California racehorses. Autopsy findings from all racehorses submitted for postmortem examination between 2006 July 1 and 2022 June 30 that had a recorded radial fracture were evaluated. We included 42 horses (30 Thoroughbreds, 12 Quarter Horses), most of which were 3-5-y-old. Catastrophic radial fracture was observed in 30 (71%) horses; in the remaining 12 (29%) horses, the fracture of the radius w...
Legg KA, Gibson MJ, Gee EK, Rogers CW.Injury modelling based on changes in speed and stride characteristics of racehorses has become a primary industry focus for the Thoroughbred racing industry. However, speed and stride characteristics are strongly associated with track condition; therefore, reliable quantification of surface variables for use in future models is imperative. Objective: This study aimed to understand the interaction of objective turf track condition score (TCS) measurement with racing speed and injury in flat racing Thoroughbred horses. Methods: Retrospective time series analysis. Methods: Race-day data from 16 f...
Khaliji E, Marycz K, Horna M, Morgan JM, Galuppo LD, Vapniarsky N, Cassano JM.To evaluate IA autologous platelet-derived mitochondrial preparation versus vehicle control in a bilateral lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced model of equine synovitis. Unassigned: 2 ng of LPS was injected into bilateral intercarpal joints of 6 horses over 3 months. Autologous mitochondria, isolated with a commercial kit, were injected into one joint, while the contralateral joint received a vehicle control, a within-subject controlled experimental design. Mitochondrial organelle appearance was visualized on transmission electron microscopy. Outcome measures included synovial fluid and whole-blo...
de Souza AF, Pereira CAM, Gialain IO, Meira JBC, Ballester RY, De Zoppa ALDV.This study aimed to compare the stress distribution in proximal interphalangeal joint arthrodesis with locking compression plate in horses based on the type and method of screw implantation in the proximal hole and partial or total removal of implants after fusion.Finite element analysis.Proximal interphalangeal joint arthrodesis was simulated using a 3-hole, 4.5-mm narrow locking compression plate combined with two 5.5-mm transarticular screws. Models were created according to the type (cortex or locking) and method of implantation (uni- or bicortical) of the screw in the proximal hole of the...
Duaso J, Perez-Ecija A, Navarro A, MartÃnez E, De Las Heras A, Mendoza FJ.Equine piroplasmosis (EP) is an endemic parasitic disease in southern European countries, such as Spain. Andalusia, the most southwestern region of Europe, is the community with the highest number of registered horses and farms in Spain and one of the main international exporters of Andalusian (Spanish Purebred) horses worldwide. Considering the current expansion of this disease and the possible effect of climate change on its prevalence, studying the EP prevalence in this region is compelling. Molecular (PCR) and serological methods (cELISA and IFAT) were used to study the true and apparent p...
Kholik K, Sukri A, Priscilia Riwu KH, Ayu IW, Dewi IN.The transmission of () containing virulent genes from animals to humans and the environment poses significant public health challenges. This study aimed to detect the virulence factor of the () in isolated from the feces of apparently healthy horses in the island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. The study utilized 52 fecal samples from a total horse population of 283, calculated using the disease detection formula. Fresh feces were collected immediately after excretion and placed in buffered peptone water for subsequent analysis. The samples were then isolated on eosin methylene blue media and identi...
Kooy S, Constant J, Cole R, Boone L.Clinical use of blood-derived intra-articular therapies, such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP), have increased in equine athletes due to their proposed disease-modifying effects. Need for a shelf-stable, allogeneic PRP product with known composition for standardized treatment exists. The objective of this study was to compare systemic and local effects of a single intra-articular injection of equine leucoreduced allogeneic pooled freeze-dried PRP (alloPRP) to a placebo control (saline) in normal, healthy equine joints. Unassigned: Twelve healthy horses were randomly assigned to either control (sa...
Picanço EMB, Assis FFV, Peleja PL, Sousa ABB, Barrêto Júnior RA, Lima RF, Neves KAL, Minervino AHH.This study aimed to determine the prevalence of antibodies against equine brucellosis in three distinct equid groups (farm animal, urban carthorse, and sport horse) in Western Pará, Brazil, and to identify associated risk factors. A cross-sectional study, involving 75 farms across 14 municipalities, sampled 1069 equids composed of urban carthorses and sport horses. Serum samples were tested for antibodies against spp. using the buffered acidified plate antigen (BAPA) test for screening, followed by the serum agglutination in tubes with 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) for confirmation. Univariate an...
Scupham AJ.Many viruses mutate rapidly to adapt to host defenses, and for some of these viruses, the result is long-term infection in individual hosts. The work described here examines the infection and long-term maintenance of a newly identified virus, equine parvovirus-hepatitis (EqPV-H), in an individual horse. This description is possible because of a hypervariable region in the capsid gene; sequence variants were tracked by high-throughput sequencing of serum samples taken over a 16-year period. The data support the hypothesis that EqPV-H infection resulted in a sequence variant bottleneck. The cont...
Heun F, Delarocque J, Feige K, Hellige M.Nerve atrophy results in trigeminal nerve (TN) asymmetry detectable by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in humans, but similar studies have not been performed in horses with idiopathic trigeminal-mediated headshaking (ITMHS). Objective: Horses with ITMHS show greater MRI-detected trigeminal-nerve asymmetry than controls. Methods: A total of 20 adult horses with ITMHS and six unaffected control horses. Methods: Retrospective case-control study of the TN cross-sectional area (TNCSA) based on 3-Tesla MRI scans of the equine brain. TNCSA and its side-to-side differences at four defined measurement...
McGuire CJ, Knowles EJ, Harris PA, Menzies-Gow NJ.Circulating insulin concentrations are used to quantify risk of laminitis in currently non-laminitic ponies. Basal serum activin A (AA) concentration has previously been positively correlated with serum insulin concentrations 60 minutes (T60) following an oral sugar test (OST) in ponies with equine metabolic syndrome. Therefore, circulating AA might be a useful marker for insulin dysregulation (ID) and laminitis risk. Objective: To explore the relationship between circulating AA concentrations at baseline (T0) and T60 in ponies that developed laminitis within six months and non-laminitic ponie...
Zhao Y, Liu Y, Tao J, Cao J, Lin Y, He Q, Fang X, Yun S, Du M, Su S, Bao T, Bai D, Zhang X, Dugarjaviin M.Reproductive health in mares is pivotal for the sustainability of the equine industry, yet vaginal microbiota dysbiosis remains an underrecognized contributor to infections such as endometritis and bacterial vaginosis. While spp. dominate healthy vaginal ecosystems in humans and livestock, their role in equine reproductive health, particularly in resilient breeds like Mongolian mares, is poorly understood. This study aimed to isolate and characterize a novel strain from the vaginal microbiota of healthy Mongolian mares and evaluate its probiotic potential for mitigating equine reproductive d...
Richardson LM, Gordon J, Davila C, Chamoun-Emanuelli AM, Zdyrski C, Whitfield-Cargile CM.Gastrointestinal (GI) disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in horses, with disruption of the intestinal epithelial barrier playing a central role in disease pathogenesis. A deeper understanding of the molecular and functional properties of the equine intestinal barrier is essential to improve diagnostics and therapeutics. While intestinal organoids have emerged as a promising tool for modeling GI physiology and disease, equine-specific data remain limited. Existing studies vary in methodology and often lack functional characterization, particularly across different intestinal re...
AgrÃcola R, Ribeiro G, Borges J, Carvalho L, Roquet I, Carvalho LM, Prazeres J.Duodenal pathologies are underreported in equine medicine, probably not due to little occurrence, but due to the limitations of current diagnostic techniques. The aim of this report is to describe a novel duodenoscopic approach, that allows a complete visualization of a region inaccessible via standard techniques. Gastroduodenoscopy was performed in a clinical setting in 60 adult horses referred to us due to complaints suspected to be related to gastroduodenal diseases. The initial steps of the procedure were performed using previously published techniques. Once the video-endoscope reached the...
Loublier C, Taminiau B, Seidel L, Moula N, Tano C, Cesarini C, Costa M, Lecoq L, Daube G, Amory H.Faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) and probiotics are used in equine practice. Understanding veterinarians' perceptions and practices is crucial for effective implementation. Objective: (1) Evaluate the prevalence, usage patterns and perceived effectiveness of probiotics and FMT among equine veterinarians in France and Belgium. (2) Assess their knowledge, practices and influencing factors across demographics and settings. (3) Explore links between FMT protocols and treatment satisfaction. Methods: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: An online survey collected demographic data and responses o...
Whitlock F, Grewar J, Newton R.The epidemiology of equine influenza (EI) in the United Kingdom has not been systematically described since the 2019 epidemic. Objective: To summarise UK EI surveillance (2020-2024), quantify outbreak seasonality and assess movement-related sources. Methods: Retrospective observational analysis of national surveillance and horse importation data. Methods: Epidemiological data for laboratory-confirmed EI cases in the United Kingdom were collated. Outbreaks (EI-infected premises) were defined as one or more laboratory-confirmed cases on the same premises within a 4-week period. Monthly outbreak ...
Boros K, Dyson S, Pollard D, Nagy A.There are limited data on long-term follow-up of radiographic changes of the proximal sesamoid bones (PSBs) in Thoroughbred racehorses. The effect of training and racing on radiodensity of the PSBs in live Thoroughbreds has not been described. Objective: To follow radiographic changes of the PSBs in racehorses over 2 years and describe alterations in overall radiodensity. Methods: Prospective cohort study. Methods: Forty yearlings were enrolled at the first examination (T0). Re-examinations were performed four times, approximately 6 months apart, on 31 (T1), 23 (T2), 13 (T3) and 8 (T4) horse...
Lieberth S, Thieme K, Dancker C, Merle R, Eule JC.Retrobulbar anaesthesia (RBA) is relevant for ocular surgery in standing sedated horses. Objective: Gathering insights on experiences with RBA techniques. Methods: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: An online survey collected information on the respondents' professional background, indications, injection methods, use of ultrasound assistance, medication, and complications associated with RBA in horses. Results: Two-hundred and thirty-eight veterinarians from 25 countries contributed. 86.1% were members of veterinary specialty colleges. RBA indications were enucleation (97.8%), corneal surgery (2...
Zimmerman KL, Diehl KA.To determine if serum α2-macroglobulin (A2M) concentration varies based on donor species-canine or equine-and signalment. Methods: Serum A2M concentration ([A2M]) was measured in healthy dogs (n = 30) and horses (n = 31) using species-specific ELISAs. Results: Canine and equine [A2M] median (IQR; range) were 98.70 ng/mL (92.79 ng/mL; 34.33-696.18 ng/mL) and 557 000 ng/mL (437 900 ng/mL; 62 600-3 042 900 ng/mL), respectively. Equine [A2M] was significantly higher than canine [A2M]. Depending on the statistical analysis performed, sex had either no statistical (pâ€...
Bergeler J, Liske-Schmitz A, Schmitz T, de Camp NV.The First Night Effect is a phenomenon whereby sleep duration and quality are compromised in unfamiliar environments or situations. Horses are often transported to new locations, such as sporting events. We wanted to know if the First Night Effect is also detectable in horses in two different populations. To investigate this, we compared five horses from a professional sports horse barn that are regularly used in competitions, with six horses from a breeding barn, that are less frequently transferred to unfamiliar places. Despite the significant differences observed in electroencephalography (...
Mouncey R, de Mestre AM, Arango-Sabogal JC, Verheyen KL.Gestational and early-life exposures may modulate development during growth and influence future athletic performance. Objective: To investigate associations between gestational and early-life exposures in Thoroughbreds and (i) likelihood of racing, (ii) total number of runs and (iii) total prizemoney by the end of the 3-year-old year. Methods: Prospective cohort. Methods: Daily records were kept on the location and duration of turnout, management and veterinary-attended episodes of disease or injury from birth until leaving the farm or study exit for 129 Thoroughbred foals on six stud farms. ...
