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Home / Equine Research Bank / Animals (Basel) / Assessment of Common Hematologic Parameters and Novel Hemato...
Animals : an open access journal from MDPI2025; 15(10); 1485; doi: 10.3390/ani15101485

Assessment of Common Hematologic Parameters and Novel Hematologic Ratios for Predicting Piroplasmosis Infection in Horses.

Abstract: Equine piroplasmosis (EP) is a tick-borne disease affecting equids worldwide. Diagnosis is based on direct methods (blood smear or PCR) or indirect methods (serology); however, these techniques yield positive and negative results. Thus, an alternative, reliable, rapid, and cost-effective complementary tool, such as hematologic parameters and newly described hematologic ratios, could help in the EP diagnosis. This study describes the changes induced by piroplasmosis infection on hematologic parameters and ratios in horses. PCR-positive horses exhibited anemia and thrombocytopenia, whereas PCR-positive horses showed anemia and leukocytosis. -seropositive horses had lower neutrophil and lymphocyte percentages than seronegative horses. Hematologic ratios displayed significant differences between negative and infected horses (mostly those infected by ). Most of the variations observed in these ratios were those previously linked to the worst prognosis or outcome in horses and humans. This study also evaluates the ability to predict the EP status of these hematologic parameters and ratios, with platelet-related parameters showing a fair ability to predict a PCR-positive result. While molecular methods remain the gold standard, complete hematology analysis and ratios could provide valuable complementary information to enhance the diagnostic accuracy of piroplasmosis in horses.
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Publication Date: 2025-05-20 PubMed ID: 40427362PubMed Central: PMC12108503DOI: 10.3390/ani15101485Google 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.

This study explores how changes in common blood parameters and novel hematological ratios can aid in the diagnosis of Equine piroplasmosis (EP), a tick-borne disease affecting horses. It indicates that these elements could provide valuable supplementary information to the current diagnostic methods, potentially improving accuracy.

Understanding Equine Piroplasmosis

  • Equine piroplasmosis (EP) is a disease in horses that spreads through ticks.
  • There are common techniques for diagnosing EP, including blood smears, PCR, and serology tests, but these methods sometimes yield both positive and negative results, indicating a lack of full accuracy.
  • To improve diagnostic accuracy, the study is exploring alternative means including hematologic parameters and newly devised hematologic ratios.

Investigating Hematologic Changes

  • The research studied changes caused by EP infection on hematologic parameters and ratios in horses.
  • In cases with PCR-positive horses, symptoms of anemia and thrombocytopenia (a lower than normal count of platelets in the blood) were observed. Meanwhile, PCR-positive horses exhibited symptoms of anemia and leukocytosis (higher than normal white blood cell count).
  • The study found that horses seropositive for EP had lower percentages of neutrophils (a type of white blood cell) and lymphocytes (a variety of white blood cell involved in the immune response) compared to horses that were seronegative.

Role of Hematologic Ratios

  • The study observed that hematologic ratios showed significant disparities between EP-infected horses and those not infected; the differences were particularly pronounced in horses infected by certain strains of the disease.
  • The variations in the hematologic ratios linked with the worst prognosis or treatment outcomes in both horses and humans were especially noticeable.

Diagnostic Potential of Hematologic Parameters

  • The research evaluated the predictive capability of these hematologic parameters and ratios on EP status.
  • In particular, parameters related to platelets (small particles in the blood that help with clotting) showed a significant capability to predict a PCR-positive result for EP.
  • The findings suggest that while molecular methods are the gold standard for diagnosing EP, a full hematological analysis and use of these ratios could offer valuable additional information to enhance diagnostic precision.

Cite This Article

APA
Duaso J, Perez-Ecija A, Martínez E, Navarro A, De Las Heras A, Mendoza FJ. (2025). Assessment of Common Hematologic Parameters and Novel Hematologic Ratios for Predicting Piroplasmosis Infection in Horses. Animals (Basel), 15(10), 1485. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani15101485

Publication

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
ISSN: 2076-2615
NlmUniqueID: 101635614
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 15
Issue: 10
PII: 1485

Researcher Affiliations

Duaso, Juan
  • Department of Animal Medicine and Surgery, University of Cordoba, 14014 Cordoba, Spain.
Perez-Ecija, Alejandro
  • Department of Animal Medicine and Surgery, University of Cordoba, 14014 Cordoba, Spain.
Martínez, Esther
  • Gasset Laboratory, DAV Salud Group SL, 18200 Granada, Spain.
Navarro, Ana
  • Gasset Laboratory, DAV Salud Group SL, 18200 Granada, Spain.
De Las Heras, Adelaida
  • Department of Animal Medicine and Surgery, University of Cordoba, 14014 Cordoba, Spain.
Mendoza, Francisco J
  • Department of Animal Medicine and Surgery, University of Cordoba, 14014 Cordoba, Spain.

Grant Funding

  • Plan Propio de Investigaciu00f3n Enrique Aguilar Benitez de Lugo (AGR 277) / University of Cu00f3rdoba

Conflict of Interest Statement

Authors Esther Martínez and Ana Navarro were employed by the company Gasset Laboratory, DAV Salud Group SL. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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Citations

This article has been cited 5 times.
  1. Deniz Ö, Erol HS, van den Hoven R, Onmaz AC, Aragona F, Fazio F. Monitoring Weaning Stress in Fillies and Colts on a Thoroughbred Breeding Farm by Cortisol and Blood Inflammatory Markers: The Benefits of Gradual Separation and Social Support. Animals (Basel) 2025 Dec 10;15(24).
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