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Veterinary record open2015; 2(1); e000107; doi: 10.1136/vetreco-2014-000107

A longitudinal study of poor performance and subclinical respiratory viral activity in Standardbred trotters.

Abstract: While clinical respiratory disease is considered a main cause of poor performance in horses, the role of subclinical respiratory virus infections is less clear and needs further investigation. Objective: In this descriptive longitudinal study the relationship of markers of subclinical respiratory viral activity to occurrence of poor performance in racing Standardbred trotters was investigated. Methods: 66 elite Standardbred trotters were followed for 13 months by nasal swabs analysed with qPCR for equine influenza virus, equine arteritis virus, equine rhinitis B virus (ERBV), equine herpesvirus type 1(EHV-1) and equine herpesvirus type 4 (EHV-4) and serology to equine rhinitis A virus (ERAV), ERBV, EHV-1 and EHV-4, as well as the acute phase protein serum amyloid A (SAA). Findings on lab analyses were subsequently assessed for possible correlations to workload performance and trainer opinion measures of poor performance. Results: Despite occurrence of poor performance and subclinical viral activity the authors were unable to detect association neither between subclinical viral activity and poor performance, nor between SAA elevations and either viral activity or poor performance. Conclusions: Consistent with earlier study results, antibody titres to ERBV remained high for at least a year and few horses two years or older were seronegative to either ERAV or ERBV. In absence of clinical signs, serology to common respiratory viruses appears to have little diagnostic benefit in evaluation of poor performance in young athletic horses.
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Publication Date: 2015-06-17 PubMed ID: 26392904PubMed Central: PMC4567161DOI: 10.1136/vetreco-2014-000107Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research investigates the relationship between subclinical respiratory viral activity and poor performance in Standardbred trotters, elite racing horses. Despite the identified presence of subclinical viral activity and poor performance in these horses, the study did not find any association between the two. The researchers also note that regular blood tests for common respiratory viruses appear to offer little diagnostic value for poor performance in these horses without clinical signs.

Study Design

  • The researchers carried out a descriptive longitudinal study, lasting 13 months, on 66 elite Standardbred trotters, a breed of racehorse. The purpose of this long-term study was to observe any changes over time and identify any potential trends.
  • Different methods were used to gather data. Nasal swabs taken from the horses were analysed for signs of various common equine viruses, including equine influenza virus, equine arteritis virus, equine rhinitis B virus (ERBV), equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1), and equine herpesvirus type 4 (EHV-4).
  • In addition, blood serum testing was used to detect antibodies to ERAV, ERBV, EHV-1 and EHV-4, as well as to measure levels of the acute phase protein serum amyloid A (SAA), which is often elevated in response to inflammation or infection.

Results

  • The study did find incidences of poor performance and subclinical viral activity (viral activity that does not manifest with overt or observable signs) amongst the tested horses.
  • However, no correlation was found between the poor performance and the presence of the subclinical viral activity.
  • The researchers also did not find any correlation between elevated levels of SAA and either viral activity or poor performance.

Conclusions

  • The study’s findings are consistent with previous research indicating that antibody titres (concentration) to ERBV remain high over a long period – at least one year, in this study – and few horses aged two years or older lack antibodies to either ERAV or ERBV.
  • The results suggest that, in the absence of clinical symptoms, regular serology (blood serum testing) for common respiratory viruses offers little value for diagnosing the cause of poor performance in young, athletic horses.

Cite This Article

APA
Back H, Penell J, Pringle J, Isaksson M, Ronéus N, Treiberg Berndtsson L, Ståhl K. (2015). A longitudinal study of poor performance and subclinical respiratory viral activity in Standardbred trotters. Vet Rec Open, 2(1), e000107. https://doi.org/10.1136/vetreco-2014-000107

Publication

Veterinary record open
ISSN: 2052-6113
NlmUniqueID: 101653671
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 2
Issue: 1
Pages: e000107

Researcher Affiliations

Back, Helena
  • Department of Virology, Immunobiology and Parasitology , National Veterinary Institute , Uppsala , Sweden.
Penell, Johanna
  • Department of Veterinary Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Surrey, Guildford , UK.
Pringle, John
  • Department of Clinical Sciences , Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences , Uppsala , Sweden.
Isaksson, Mats
  • Department of Virology, Immunobiology and Parasitology , National Veterinary Institute , Uppsala , Sweden.
Ronéus, Nils
  • Equine Hospital Solvalla , Stockholm , Sweden.
Treiberg Berndtsson, Louise
  • Department of Virology, Immunobiology and Parasitology , National Veterinary Institute , Uppsala , Sweden.
Ståhl, Karl
  • Department of Disease Control and Epidemiology , National Veterinary Institute , Uppsala , Sweden.

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Citations

This article has been cited 8 times.
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