FREE SHIPPING over $40
OVER 9000 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS
5% OFF ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS
100% HAPPINESS GUARANTEE
Analyze Diet
0
Home / Equine Research Bank / Am Rev Respir Dis / Bronchoalveolar lavage in ponies with recurrent airway obstr...
The American review of respiratory disease1985; 132(5); 1066-1070; doi: 10.1164/arrd.1985.132.5.1066

Bronchoalveolar lavage in ponies with recurrent airway obstruction (heaves).

Abstract: We performed bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) in 2 groups of ponies. Principal ponies had a history of heaves, a disease characterized by recurrent airway obstruction and airway hyperreactivity when ponies are housed in a barn and fed hay; control ponies had no history of airway obstruction. Ponies were paired (principal and control), and BAL was performed after 2 months of being pastured when principal ponies were in clinical remission (Period A), after barn housing when principal ponies had acute airway obstruction (Period B), and after a 1- and a 2-wk recovery phase of pasture grazing (Periods C and D). At Periods A, C, and D, white blood cell counts and immunoglobulin/albumin ratios in peripheral blood and BAL fluid of principal and control animals did not differ. Peripheral blood white cell counts and immunoglobulin/albumin ratios were unaffected by barn exposure and return to pasture. However, at Period B, neutrophil numbers in the BAL fluid were increased in the principal but not in the control animals. The IgG/albumin ratio of the principal animals increased at Period C. We conclude that in ponies with a history of heaves, barn exposure results in increased neutrophils in BAL fluid. In this pony model of lung disease, pulmonary leukostasis follows a time course similar to that of airway obstruction and airway hyperreactivity.
Get Full Text
Publication Date: 1985-11-01 PubMed ID: 4062037DOI: 10.1164/arrd.1985.132.5.1066Google Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
LinkedInCopy
  • Journal Article
  • Research Support
  • Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support
  • U.S. Gov't
  • P.H.S.

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 research involved studying two groups of ponies – one group suffering from recurrent airway obstruction, known as ‘heaves’, and a control group of healthy ponies. The study found that barn exposure led to a significant increase in neutrophils in the lung fluid acting as an indicator of inflammation in the ponies with heaves.

Aims of the research

  • The study was primarily conducted to understand the pattern of inflammation in ponies suffering from ‘heaves’, a disease characterized by repeated airway obstruction and increased sensitivity of the airways when housed in a barn and fed hay.

Methodology

  • Two groups of ponies were involved in the study – one healthy control group and another group which had a history of ‘heaves’.
  • These ponies were paired (one from each group), and Bronchoalveolar Lavage (BAL), a medical procedure involving examination of the bronchi and lung spaces, was performed on them under different conditions – after being pastured for two months (Period A), after being housed in a barn (Period B), and post recovery phases of one and two weeks of pasture grazing (Periods C and D).

Findings

  • The study found no difference in white blood cell counts and immunoglobulin/albumin ratios in the peripheral blood and BAL fluid of the two groups of ponies at Periods A, C, and D.
  • However, during barn exposure (Period B), there was a significant increase in neutrophils, a type of white blood cell, in the BAL fluid of principal ponies, and not in the control ones.
  • There was no difference in peripheral blood white cell count or immunoglobulin/albumin ratios with barn exposure or return to pasture.
  • An unexpected observation was the increased IgG/albumin ratio in the principal ponies during Period C, implying an immune response.

Conclusion

  • Based on these findings, the researchers concluded that barn exposure for ponies with a history of heaves led to an increase in neutrophils in BAL fluid, indicating an inflammation response.
  • In the horse model of lung disease, this inflammation follows a similar timeline as airway obstruction and increased sensitivity of the airways.

Cite This Article

APA
Derksen FJ, Scott JS, Miller DC, Slocombe RF, Robinson NE. (1985). Bronchoalveolar lavage in ponies with recurrent airway obstruction (heaves). Am Rev Respir Dis, 132(5), 1066-1070. https://doi.org/10.1164/arrd.1985.132.5.1066

Publication

The American review of respiratory disease
ISSN: 0003-0805
NlmUniqueID: 0370523
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 132
Issue: 5
Pages: 1066-1070

Researcher Affiliations

Derksen, F J
    Scott, J S
      Miller, D C
        Slocombe, R F
          Robinson, N E

            MeSH Terms

            • Albumins / analysis
            • Animals
            • Bronchi / immunology
            • Horse Diseases / immunology
            • Horses
            • Immunoglobulins / analysis
            • Leukocyte Count
            • Lung Diseases, Obstructive / immunology
            • Lung Diseases, Obstructive / veterinary
            • Neutrophils
            • Ozone / toxicity
            • Pulmonary Alveoli / immunology
            • Recurrence

            Grant Funding

            • HL-27619 / NHLBI NIH HHS
            • HL-30669 / NHLBI NIH HHS

            Citations

            This article has been cited 14 times.
            1. Larson EM, Babasyan S, Wagner B. IgE-Binding Monocytes Have an Enhanced Ability to Produce IL-8 (CXCL8) in Animals with Naturally Occurring Allergy. J Immunol 2021 May 15;206(10):2312-2321.
              doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.2001354pubmed: 33952617google scholar: lookup
            2. Payette F, Charlebois A, Fairbrother JH, Beauchamp G, Leclere M. Nicoletella semolina in the airways of healthy horses and horses with severe asthma. J Vet Intern Med 2021 May;35(3):1612-1619.
              doi: 10.1111/jvim.16140pubmed: 33942932google scholar: lookup
            3. Sheats MK, Davis KU, Poole JA. Comparative Review of Asthma in Farmers and Horses. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep 2019 Oct 10;19(11):50.
              doi: 10.1007/s11882-019-0882-2pubmed: 31599358google scholar: lookup
            4. Bond S, Léguillette R, Richard EA, Couetil L, Lavoie JP, Martin JG, Pirie RS. Equine asthma: Integrative biologic relevance of a recently proposed nomenclature. J Vet Intern Med 2018 Nov;32(6):2088-2098.
              doi: 10.1111/jvim.15302pubmed: 30294851google scholar: lookup
            5. Husulak ML, Manning ST, Meachem MD, Burgess HJ, Epp TY, Montgomery JB. Does antimicrobial therapy improve outcomes in horses with severe equine asthma and a positive tracheal wash bacterial culture?. Can J Vet Res 2018 Jul;82(3):184-191.
              pubmed: 30026642
            6. Barton AK, Schulze T, Doherr MG, Gehlen H. Influence of bronchoalveolar lavage on thoracic radiography in the horse. J Vet Sci 2018 Jul 31;19(4):563-569.
              doi: 10.4142/jvs.2018.19.4.563pubmed: 29486534google scholar: lookup
            7. Barton AK, Gehlen H. Pulmonary Remodeling in Equine Asthma: What Do We Know about Mediators of Inflammation in the Horse?. Mediators Inflamm 2016;2016:5693205.
              doi: 10.1155/2016/5693205pubmed: 28053371google scholar: lookup
            8. Couëtil LL, Cardwell JM, Gerber V, Lavoie JP, Léguillette R, Richard EA. Inflammatory Airway Disease of Horses--Revised Consensus Statement. J Vet Intern Med 2016 Mar-Apr;30(2):503-15.
              doi: 10.1111/jvim.13824pubmed: 26806374google scholar: lookup
            9. Toussaint M, Fievez L, Desmet CJ, Pirottin D, Farnir F, Bureau F, Lekeux P. Increased hypoxia-inducible factor 1α expression in lung cells of horses with recurrent airway obstruction. BMC Vet Res 2012 May 23;8:64.
              doi: 10.1186/1746-6148-8-64pubmed: 22621400google scholar: lookup
            10. Rousseau K, Cardwell JM, Humphrey E, Newton R, Knight D, Clegg P, Thornton DJ. Muc5b is the major polymeric mucin in mucus from thoroughbred horses with and without airway mucus accumulation. PLoS One 2011;6(5):e19678.
              doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0019678pubmed: 21602926google scholar: lookup
            11. Naylor JM, Clark EG, Clayton HM. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Usefulness of clinical signs, bronchoalveolar lavage, and lung biopsy as diagnostic and prognostic aids. Can Vet J 1992 Sep;33(9):591-8.
              pubmed: 17424075
            12. Hare JE, Viel L, Conlon PD, Marshall JS. Evaluation of an in vitro degranulation challenge procedure for equine pulmonary mast cells. Can J Vet Res 1998 Apr;62(2):133-9.
              pubmed: 9553713
            13. Bartenschlager F, Kuropka B, Schmitz P, Dumke F, Landmann K, Gruber AD, Weise C, Schnabel CL, Gehlen H, Mundhenk L. Proteomic profiling of equine airway mucus reveals compositional changes in asthmatic phenotypes. Sci Rep 2026 Feb 10;16(1):5880.
              doi: 10.1038/s41598-026-38766-3pubmed: 41667845google scholar: lookup
            14. Woodrow JS, Hopster K, Palmisano M, Payette F, Kulp J, Stefanovski D, Nolen-Walston R. Time to resolution of airway inflammation caused by bronchoalveolar lavage in healthy horses. J Vet Intern Med 2024 Sep-Oct;38(5):2776-2782.
              doi: 10.1111/jvim.17169pubmed: 39198933google scholar: lookup
            Subscribe to our newsletter
            Join 99,357 horse owners like you who receive our email updates on horse health and nutrition.