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Topic:Veterinary Research
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.
The effect of adding oral dexamethasone to feed alterations on the airway cell inflammatory gene expression in stabled horses affected with recurrent airway obstruction. Chemokine expression in airway epithelium and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cells of horses with recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) is increased. Objective: For RAO-affected horses that are stabled and fed a pelleted ration, the addition of oral dexamethasone further improves pulmonary function and reduces inflammatory gene expression in pulmonary cells. Methods: Twelve RAO-affected horses. Methods: In a randomized cross-over experiment, the effect of feeding pellets in lieu of hay to stabled, RAO-affected horses was compared with the effect of feeding pellets and administering a 21-day ...
Heart murmurs and valvular regurgitation in thoroughbred racehorses: epidemiology and associations with athletic performance. Cardiac murmurs associated with valvular regurgitation occur commonly in conditioned performance horses, but their association with athletic performance is unknown. Objective: Cardiac valvular regurgitation has a negative association with race performance. Methods: Five hundred and twenty-six "race fit" Thoroughbred racehorses engaged in either flat (race distance 1,000-2,500 m) or jump racing (race distance 3,200-6,400 m). Methods: Cardiac auscultation and color flow Doppler (CFD) echocardiography were performed on 777 occasions. The associations between the presence and severity of either an...
Intake and excretion of disodium monomethylarsonate in horses: a speciation study. Capillary electrophoresis coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was used in a speciation study on disodium monomethylarsonate (DS-MMA(V)) and its metabolites in horses, to which the drug was administered by intramuscular injection on five consecutive days at a single arsenic dosage of 270 mg day(-1). Samples of urine, whole blood, plasma, and mane hair were analyzed before, during, and after drug administration. The data show that blood clearing and urinary excretion of MMA is a fast process following first-order kinetics with biological half-lives of about 38 h and 44 h for ...
Electrolytes changes in mammary secretions before foaling in jennies. No knowledge regarding the peripartum changes in mammary secretions in the jenny are presently available in literature. In the mare, instead, several studies report the role of these changes as indicators of foetal readiness for birth and impending parturition. This experiment was designed to determine calcium, sodium, potassium concentrations, and the value of sodium/potassium ratio in mammary fluids during prepartum in the jenny. Samples were daily collected by hand milking, after mammary gland size increased noticeably, from 17 Martina Franca jennies. Prepartum mammary secretions were analy...
The pathology of bronchointerstitial pneumonia in young foals associated with the first outbreak of equine influenza in Australia. The first outbreak of equine influenza virus (EIV) infection was confirmed in Australia in 2007. Some EIV-positive young foals died with bronchointerstitial pneumonia, an rare disease process in this age group that is often postulated to be caused by viral infection. Objective: The aim of this study was to describe post mortem lesions in EIV-infected foals. Methods: Post mortem examinations were conducted on 11 young foals (age 2-12 days) submitted to the Scone Veterinary Hospital, NSW over a 2-month period in 2007. The foals had presented with or developed fatal pneumonia, and were known or s...
Mechanical nociceptive thresholds within the pastern region of Tennessee Walking Horses. 'Soring' is the term used to describe the application of an irritant to the distal forelimbs of gaited horses with the sole intent of inflicting pain and inducing altered gait, illegally practiced in Tennessee Walking Horses. Objective methods for the detection of limb pain due to this practice are, however, lacking. Objective: To assess whether Tennessee Walking Horses respond to manual pressures<or=10 kg/cm2 and to establish reference mechanical nociceptive thresholds (MNTs) within the pastern region. Methods: In 25 mature Tennessee Walking Horses in which no irritant had been applied, MN...
In vitro effects of hydrochloric and lactic acids on bioelectric properties of equine gastric squamous mucosa. Volatile fatty acids, byproducts of carbohydrate fermentation by resident bacteria, have been implicated in causing nonglandular (NG) gastric ulcers. Lactic acid (LA), also produced by stomach bacteria, may cause gastric ulcers when exposed to the equine NG mucosa. Objective: To investigate the in vitro effects of LA on equine NG mucosa bioelectric properties, sodium transport and tissue resistance. Methods: Gastric tissues obtained from 13 mature horses were studied in Ussing chambers. Short-circuit current (Isc) and potential difference (PD) were measured, and electrical resistance (R) and c...
Electromyographic activity of the longissimus dorsi muscles in horses when walking on a treadmill. The pattern of electromyographic activity of the equine long back muscle at the walk has not yet been reported. The aim of this study was to use surface electromyography to measure activity of the longissimus dorsi muscles of horses walking on a treadmill. Fifteen horses without back pain were used and electromyographs were recorded bilaterally from the longissimus dorsi muscles at the level of T12, T16 and L3. Mean electromyograph activity and mean motion were calculated for each horse. At the walk, only one maximum activity for each longissimus dorsi muscle was detected during each motion cy...
Large colon resection and anastomosis in horses: 52 cases (1996-2006). Large colon resection and anastomosis (LCRA) is the most aggressive method of surgical management of a colon with questionable viability. Currently, published studies are comprised mostly of broodmares and discuss short-term survival. Objective: To determine the prognosis for survival after LCRA in a diverse population of horses, report the incidence of post operative complications, and determine if associations between analysed variables and survival rate exist. Methods: The medical records of 52 horses that underwent LCRA were evaluated. Data were used to identify univariable associations wi...
The persistence of benzimidazole-resistant cyathostomes on horse farms in Ontario over 10 years and the effectiveness of ivermectin and moxidectin against these resistant strains. Three clinical trials with fecal egg count reduction tests and coproculture were conducted on 2 standardbred farms in Ontario. On Farm A, the treatment groups were mebendazole and ivermectin in trial 1, and fenbendazole and moxidectin in another. On Farm B, treatment groups were mebendazole and ivermectin. All horses treated with mebendazole or fenbendazole were subsequently treated with ivermectin or moxidectin. Strongyle eggs/g feces were estimated pre- and post-treatment using the Cornell-McMaster dilution and Cornell-Wisconsin centrifugal flotation techniques. After treatment, there was no...
High resolution microscopic survey of third metacarpal articular calcified cartilage and subchondral bone in the juvenile horse: possible implications in chondro-osseous disease. The aim was to survey articular calcified cartilage (ACC) and subchondral bone in the palmar and dorsal regions of the condyles of the third metacarpal bone (Mc3) of young horses with minimal or no signs of musculo-skeletal abnormality. Back-scattered electron scanning electron microscopy (BSE SEM) was conducted on polymethyl methacrylate-embedded mediolateral slices and macerated wedges of the right distal Mc3 from seven each of trained and untrained 2-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Furrows or grooves visible to the naked eye in the mineralizing front (MF) of ACC are the commonest "lesion" and...
Comparison of two real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays for the detection of Equine arteritis virus nucleic acid in equine semen and tissue culture fluid. Two previously developed TaqMan fluorogenic probe-based 1-tube real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (real-time RT-PCR) assays (T1 and T2) were compared and validated for the detection of Equine arteritis virus (EAV) nucleic acid in equine semen and tissue culture fluid (TCF). The specificity and sensitivity of these 2 molecular-based assays were compared to traditional virus isolation (VI) in cell culture. The T1 real-time RT-PCR had a higher sensitivity (93.4%) than the T2 real-time RT-PCR (42.6%) for detection of EAV RNA in semen. However, the T1 real-time RT-PCR was les...
Evaluation of antigen detection kits for diagnosis of equine influenza. In this study, we evaluated whether five rapid antigen detection kits for human influenza could be used for the diagnosis of equine influenza (EI). Limiting dilution analyses showed that Directigen Flu A+B and ESPLINE INFLUENZA A&B-N had the highest sensitivities to equine-2 influenza viruses (EIVs) among the kits investigated. From the results of virus detection in nasal swabs taken from horses infected with EIV, these two kits could produce positive results in reasonable agreement with those obtained by virus isolation or RT-PCR, suggesting that these kits could be useful for rapid diagn...
Basic farriery for the performance horse. Proper farriery promotes a healthy functional foot and biomechanical efficiency and prevents lameness. Because the equine veterinarian is responsible for the soundness of the horse, a working knowledge of farriery becomes essential. A thorough knowledge of traditional horseshoeing enables the veterinarian to interact with the farrier at the farrier's level; this ultimately enhances and promotes quality hoof care. This article focuses on fundamental farriery and recognizing subtle changes in hoof conformation that can be used to preserve the integrity of the hoof capsule, along with the structu...
The effect of early training and the adaptation and conditioning of skeletal tissues. Horses as equine athletes must be conditioned and trained to optimize the whole animal for the particular type of athletic activity. An extremely high proportion of all injuries in the equine athlete in general, and in the racehorse in particular, are associated with the skeletal system, many of which are believed to arise from a mismatch between the prevailing exercise levels and adaptation. To maximize performance, yet minimize injury, it is important to understand and apply the principles of functional adaptation of the component tissues of the skeletal system (bone, cartilage, tendons, and...
Regenerative medicine for tendinous and ligamentous injuries of sport horses. After tendon injury, the scar tissue that replaces the damaged tendon results in a substantial risk for reinjury. The goal of regenerative therapies is to restore normal structural architecture and biomechanical function to an injured tissue. Successful restoration processes for any tissue are thought to recapitulate those of development, in which there are spatial and temporal interactions between scaffold, growth factors, and cell populations.
The California Postmortem Program: leading the way. The California Postmortem Program studies disease surveillance, discovers new causes of death, and develops new diagnostic methods for disease detection. It also informs directions for research focused on elucidating the etiopathogenesis of, and risk factors for, catastrophic fractures and other causes of death. Because most fatal injuries seem to be the acute culmination of a more chronic process, intervention and prevention of injuries is possible with enhanced knowledge of the etiopathogenesis of injuries and risk factors for injuries. These advances also would facilitate development of man...
Evaluation of a laparoscopic technique for collection of serial full-thickness small intestinal biopsy specimens in standing sedated horses. To assess a technique for laparoscopic collection of serial full-thickness small intestinal biopsy specimens in horses. Methods: 13 healthy adult horses. Methods: In the ex vivo portion of the study, sections of duodenum and jejunum obtained from 6 horses immediately after euthanasia were divided into 3 segments. Each segment was randomly assigned to the control group, the double-layer hand-sewn closure group, or the endoscopic linear stapler (ELS) group. Bursting strength and bursting wall tension were measured and compared among groups; luminal diameter reduction at the biopsy site was compa...
Musculoskeletal injuries in nonracing quarter horses. Quarter horses used for western performance competitions commonly sustain a variety of musculoskeletal injuries. It is important for the veterinarian to have an understanding of some of the breed characteristics and the nature of the competitions in which individual horses are being used so as to diagnose, treat, and prevent injury as effectively as possible.
Adaptation strategies of horses with lameness. The skill to diagnose lameness in horses is paramount for every equine practitioner. Early recognition of locomotor deficiencies plays a central role in sports medicine management, preventing deterioration of the disease or catastrophic injuries. Horses use characteristic compensatory movements of specific body parts to decrease loading of the affected limb. This article describes the underlying changes in intra- and interlimb coordination and the resulting load redistribution between the limbs. This enables the practitioner to better understand the changes in movement associated with lameness...
Identification of hyperendemic foci of horses with West Nile virus disease in Texas. To determine whether West Nile virus (WNV) disease hyperendemic foci (hot spots) exist within the horse population in Texas and, if detected, to identify the locations. Methods: Reports of 1,907 horses with WNV disease in Texas from 2002 to 2004. Methods: Case data with spatial information from WNV epidemics occurring in 2002 (1,377 horses), 2003 (396 horses), and 2004 (134 horses) were analyzed by use of the spatial scan statistic (Poisson model) and kriging of empirical Bayes smoothed county attack rates to determine locations of horses with WNV disease in which affected horses were consiste...
Bacterial isolates from equine infections in western Canada (1998-2003). All bacterial samples of equine origin submitted to the diagnostic laboratory at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine from January 1998 to December 2003 from either "in-clinic" or Field Service cases were accessed (1323 submissions). The most common bacterial isolates from specific presenting signs were identified, along with their in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility patterns. The most common site from which significant bacterial isolates were recovered was the respiratory tract, followed by wounds. Streptococcus zooepidemicus was the most common isolate from most infections, followed ...
Correlation of acid-induced conformational transition of ferricytochrome c with cyanide binding kinetics. A relation between pH-induced conformational transitions of horse heart ferricytochrome c and the kinetics of external ligand coordination to heme iron was investigated by optical spectroscopy, circular dichroism and viscometry. The dependencies of both the association, k (a), and dissociation rate constants of cyanide binding on pH were determined from kinetic measurements. The association rate constant exhibits a bell-shaped form of dependence on pH in the region where this protein unfolds. The maximum of the dependence of k (a) on pH is found to be coincident with the pK values of conformat...
High-speed gallop locomotion in the thoroughbred racehorse. I. The effect of incline on stride parameters. During locomotion up an incline, power is required to elevate the centre of mass. This is provided when the animal's limbs are in contact with the ground. Measurements of stride timing variables from multiple limbs during high speed, over-ground locomotion would enhance our understanding of locomotor powering during changes in terrain. This study measured foot-on and foot-off times from galloping horses using a previously validated system of limb-mounted accelerometers and a global positioning system data logger. A detailed track survey provided incline information from all areas of the track....
Epidemiology of racetrack injuries in racehorses. This article describes the development of epidemiologic analyses of racetrack injury in racehorses. The risk or rate of fatal and nonfatal injury in racing and training around the world is examined. The focus is on the importance of global collaboration and the identification of modifiable risk factors. In particular, exercise-related risk factors for injury are evaluated and the potential impact of interventions discussed.
Biomechanical and mechanical investigations of the hoof-track interface in racing horses. The aim of this article is to review current knowledge of kinetic variables of the hoof-track interaction and track properties relevant to the objective of minimizing injuries to horses at racing tracks. In each phase of the stance--primary impact, secondary impact, support, and breakover, the hoof experiences different combinations of force and acceleration. The role of each combination, and of measured track properties, in causing catastrophic and chronic injuries to the limbs of racing horses is unknown. Limited data of this type have been provided in previous epidemiologic studies of risk ...
Association of soil concentrations of Rhodococcus equi and incidence of pneumonia attributable to Rhodococcus equi in foals on farms in central Kentucky. To determine whether soil concentrations of total or virulent Rhodococcus equi differed among breeding farms with and without foals with pneumonia caused by R equi. Methods: 37 farms in central Kentucky. Procedures-During January, March, and July 2006, the total concentration of R equi and concentration of virulent R equi were determined by use of quantitative bacteriologic culture and a colony immunoblot technique, respectively, in soil specimens obtained from farms. Differences in concentrations and proportion of virulent isolates within and among time points were compared among farms. Resul...
Identification of a LIM domain-containing gene in the Cyathostominae. The Cyathostominae are a complex group of nematodes and are the primary parasitic pathogens of horses. Little is known of their basic biology. As part of an investigation into mechanisms involved in reactivation of mucosal larval stages, we identified a gene encoding a predicted LIM domain-containing protein (Cy-LIM-1). LIM domains are cysteine- and histidine-rich motifs that are thought to direct protein-protein interactions. Proteins that contain these domains have a wide range of functions including gene regulation, cell fate determination and cytoskeleton organization. The Cy-lim-1 mRNA wa...
Circulating beta-endorphin, adrenocorticotrophic hormone and cortisol levels of stallions before and after short road transport: stress effect of different distances. Since transport evokes physiological adjustments that include endocrine responses, the objective of this study was to examine the responses of circulating beta-endorphin, adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol levels to transport stress in stallions. Methods: Forty-two healthy Thoroughbred and crossbred stallions were studied before and after road transport over distances of 100, 200 and 300 km. Blood samples were collected from the jugular vein: first in a single box immediately before loading (pre-samples), then immediately after transport and unloading on arrival at the breeding s...
