Dermoscopic analysis of the skin of healthy warmblood horses: a descriptive study of 34 cases in Italy.

The research is about how dermoscopy, a diagnostic tool originally used for small animals, can be applied to horses, specifically to examine their hair and skin surface features. This technique was evaluated on 34 healthy warmblood horses and showed promising results that suggest its potential use in equine healthcare.

Introduction

• The study focuses on using dermoscopy, a diagnostic method, for the assessment of the skin and hair of horses. This marks a departure from traditional uses of dermoscopy, which was initially introduced in the field of small animal dermatology.
• Historically, there has not been any substantial exploration or documentation of dermoscopy application on equine species, making this study quite innovative in the field.

Methods

• The research team performed dermoscopic analyses on 34 client-owned, healthy adult warmblood horses. The warmblood horses were all different breeds and sexes, representing a diverse sample.
• Six distinct body areas were examined on each horse: head, neck, dorsal thorax, ventral thorax, croup, and mane.
• The researchers used a smartphone-attached, hand-held dermoscope with a 20-fold magnification capability. This allowed them to capture images of the hair and skin surface of the horses to be further analysed.
• A software program was used to provide accurate measurements of the thickness of the hair shafts – both large and thin ones.

Results

• The study confirmed that dermoscopic examination is both feasible and relatively simple to carry out on horses.
• Detailed observation at 20-fold magnification revealed the presence of thick, straight hair shafts emerging from single follicular openings. Alongside these, thinner hair shafts were also visible in all areas that were examined.
• The thickness of the horse’s hair shafts varied notably between different regions. Notably, the hair shafts present on the head and mane were thicker, but less densely packed, compared to other body areas.
• Further observations included the presence of skin pigmentation and instances of perifollicular discoloration.

Conclusion

• Based on the outcomes, the study concludes that dermoscopy may be a very useful diagnostic tool for various dermatological examinations required for equine healthcare.
• The study demonstrates that it is feasible to use this technique for dealing with larger animals like horses, offering a new direction for similar future studies and further enhancement of equine healthcare.