Equine bronchoalveolar lavage cytology: survey of thoroughbred racehorses in training.
Abstract: Sixty-two Thoroughbred horses aged between 1 and 7 years in training in Sydney had bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples collected for cytological examination. All horses, except the yearlings and those with a cough, had raced at the time of the examination and the trainers reported satisfactory performance. Free erythrocytes were found in 73% of samples and haemosiderophages in 90% of the samples, indicating immediate or past occurrences of exercise-induced pulmonary haemorrhage (EIPH). Bronchoalveolar fluid from the yearlings contained significantly less (P < 0.05) erythrocytes and haemosiderophages than samples from horses in other age groups. In the older horses, there was also more haemosiderin within the macrophages. No differences in BAL cytology could be attributed to gender, and there was no relationship between BAL cytology and racing performance. The main cytological findings were (mean +/- sd): total nucleated cells--832 +/- 578/microL with the main cell types being: macrophages--59 +/- 10% (haemosiderophages--20 +/- 24%); neutrophils--9 +/- 6%; lymphocytes--31 +/- 9%. The erythrocyte count was 10.3 +/- 17.7% of the total cell count. Horses with chronic coughing had a higher proportion of macrophages and a lower proportion of lymphocytes in the leucocytes obtained from BAL. There was a higher occurrence of EIPH detected in BAL findings than that previously reported when endoscopic examination has been used to diagnose EIPH. The occurrence and severity of EIPH as indicated by the BAL findings was found to be related to exercise intensity. The cytological findings were similar to those reported in horses in the northern hemisphere.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Publication Date: 1993-11-01 PubMed ID: 8280021DOI: 10.1111/j.1751-0813.1993.tb06072.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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The research work centrally focused on studying blood cells found in lung fluid samples from racehorses to determine the incidence of exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage. The study found that 73-90% of racehorses show signs of past or present lung blood leakage, or exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage, in their lung fluid. However, no correlation with racing performance was found.
Objective and Methodology
- The study aimed to diagnose the prevalence and severity of Exercise-Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage (EIPH) in Thoroughbred racehorses in training.
- The researchers collected bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), a procedure that washes out substances from the lung, samples from 62 Thoroughbred horses aged 1 to 7 years for cytological (study of cells) examination.
- It compared different age groups, especially yearlings (one-year-old horses) and racehorses with a cough, and studied the correlation between BAL cytology and racing performance.
Key Findings
- Free erythrocytes (red blood cells) were found in 73% of samples and haemosiderophages (cells that consume free red blood cells) in 90% of samples, indicating immediate or past instances of EIPH.
- Fluid from yearlings contained significantly fewer erythrocytes and haemosiderophages, indicating fewer instances of EIPH.
- In the older horses, there was more haemosiderin (a byproduct of red blood cell breakdown) within the macrophages (a type of white blood cell), potentially indicating chronic or severe bleeding episodes.
- Horses with chronic coughing showed a higher proportion of macrophages and a lesser proportion of lymphocytes (white blood cells) in their leukocytes (another type of white blood cells).
Implications
- The high occurrence and severity of EIPH noted from BAL results appears to be related to exercise intensity. Despite this, there was no relationship found between BAL cytology and racing performance.
- The study suggests that there is more likely to be a higher occurrence of EIPH detected in BAL findings than that previously reported when using endoscopic examination to diagnose EIPH.
- Overall, this study’s findings were reported to be similar to those reported in horses in the northern hemisphere, further validating its results.
Cite This Article
APA
McKane SA, Canfield PJ, Rose RJ.
(1993).
Equine bronchoalveolar lavage cytology: survey of thoroughbred racehorses in training.
Aust Vet J, 70(11), 401-404.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-0813.1993.tb06072.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Veterinary Pathology, University of Sydney, New South Wales.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / cytology
- Erythrocyte Count / veterinary
- Female
- Hemorrhage / epidemiology
- Hemorrhage / pathology
- Hemorrhage / veterinary
- Hemosiderin / analysis
- Horse Diseases / epidemiology
- Horse Diseases / pathology
- Horses
- Lung Diseases / epidemiology
- Lung Diseases / pathology
- Lung Diseases / veterinary
- Macrophages / chemistry
- Male
- New South Wales / epidemiology
- Physical Conditioning, Animal
Citations
This article has been cited 13 times.- Mahalingam-Dhingra A, Bedenice D, Mazan MR. Bronchoalveolar lavage hemosiderosis in lightly active or sedentary horses. J Vet Intern Med 2023 May-Jun;37(3):1243-1249.
- Cullinane A, Garvey M, Walsh C, Gibbons J, Creighton A. A Scoping Review of Non-Structural Airway Disease as a Cause of Poor Performance in Racehorses. Animals (Basel) 2023 Jan 27;13(3).
- Lo Feudo CM, Stucchi L, Conturba B, Stancari G, Ferrucci F. Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses. Animals (Basel) 2022 Nov 21;12(22).
- Rocchigiani G, Verin R, Uzal FA, Singer ER, Pregel P, Ressel L, Ricci E. Pulmonary bleeding in racehorses: A gross, histologic, and ultrastructural comparison of exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage and exercise-associated fatal pulmonary hemorrhage. Vet Pathol 2022 Nov;59(6):973-982.
- Lopez Sanchez CM, Kogan C, Gold JR, Sellon DC, Bayly WM. Relationship between tracheobronchoscopic score and bronchoalveolar lavage red blood cell numbers in the diagnosis of exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage in horses. J Vet Intern Med 2020 Jan;34(1):322-329.
- Poole DC, Erickson HH. Exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage: where are we now?. Vet Med (Auckl) 2016;7:133-148.
- Gold JR, Knowles DP, Coffey T, Bayly WM. Exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage in barrel racing horses in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. J Vet Intern Med 2018 Mar;32(2):839-845.
- da Silva KM, Otaka JNP, Gonçalves CAP, Silva EGA, de Alencar NX, Lessa DAB. Association between exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage and inflammatory airway disease in polo ponies. J Equine Sci 2017;28(2):55-59.
- Léguillette R, Steinmann M, Bond SL, Stanton B. Tracheobronchoscopic Assessment of Exercise-Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage and Airway Inflammation in Barrel Racing Horses. J Vet Intern Med 2016 Jul;30(4):1327-32.
- Perez-Moreno CI, Couëtil LL, Pratt SM, Ochoa-Acuña HG, Raskin RE, Russell MA. Effect of furosemide and furosemide-carbazochrome combination on exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage in Standardbred racehorses. Can Vet J 2009 Aug;50(8):821-7.
- Ferrucci F, Stancari G, Zucca E, Ayalon S, Falcone C, Ferro E. Specificity and sensitivity of ultrasonography and endoscopy for the diagnosis of exercise-induced pulmonary haemorrhage (EIPH) in 157 race horses. Vet Res Commun 2009 Sep;33 Suppl 1:185-8.
- Lendl L, Barton AK. Equine Asthma Diagnostics: Review of Influencing Factors and Difficulties in Diagnosing Subclinical Disease. Animals (Basel) 2024 Dec 4;14(23).
- Hostetter SJ, Clark SK, Gilbertie JM, Wiechert SA, Jones DE, Sponseller BA. Age-related variation in the cellular composition of equine bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Vet Clin Pathol 2017 Jun;46(2):344-353.
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