Right ventricular function during acute exacerbation of severe equine asthma.
Abstract: Pulmonary hypertension has been described in horses with severe equine asthma, but its effect on the right ventricle has not been fully elucidated. Objective: To evaluate right ventricular structure and function after a 1-week period of pulmonary hypertension secondary to acute exacerbation of severe equine asthma. Methods: Prospective study. Methods: A clinical episode of severe equine asthma was induced experimentally in six susceptible horses. Examinations in remission and on day 7 of the clinical episode included a physical examination with clinical scoring, echocardiography, arterial blood gas measurements, venous blood sampling for cardiac biomarkers, intracardiac pressure measurements, right ventricular and right atrial myocardial biopsies, airway endoscopy and bronchoalveolar lavage. After 1 month of recovery, physical examination, echocardiography and cardiac biomarker analysis were repeated. Echocardiographic and pressure measurements were compared with those in 10 healthy control horses. Results: All horses developed clinical signs of acute pulmonary obstruction. Right heart pressures increased significantly. Altered right ventricular function could be detected by tissue Doppler and speckle tracking echocardiography. Cardiac troponin concentrations did not increase significantly, but were highly elevated in one horse which exercised in the paddock prior to sampling. Focal neutrophil infiltration was present in two myocardial samples. Even in remission, asthmatic horses showed a thicker right ventricular wall, an increased left ventricular end-systolic eccentricity index at chordal level and decreased right ventricular longitudinal strain compared with controls. Conclusions: The induced clinical episode was rather mild and the number of horses was limited because of the invasive nature of the study. Conclusions: Pulmonary obstruction in asthmatic horses induces pulmonary hypertension with right ventricular structural and functional changes.
© 2017 EVJ Ltd.
Publication Date: 2017-03-02 PubMed ID: 28132404DOI: 10.1111/evj.12675Google 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.
- Journal Article
- Asthma
- Biomarkers
- Cardiovascular Health
- Clinical Examination
- Clinical Findings
- Clinical Pathology
- Clinical Signs
- Clinical Study
- Clinical Symptoms
- Diagnosis
- Disease Diagnosis
- Disease Etiology
- Echocardiography
- Equine Diseases
- Equine Health
- Experimental Methods
- Horses
- Pulmonary Health
- Respiratory Disease
- Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Practice
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 study investigates the structure and function of the right ventricle in horses suffering from severe equine asthma and subsequent pulmonary hypertension. It was observed that pulmonary obstruction caused by asthma led to significant alterations in the right ventricle, even after an acute clinical episode.
Methodology
- The study was conducted prospectively on six horses subjected to an experimentally induced episode of severe equine asthma.
- The research team performed multiple examinations both in remission and on day 7 of the clinical episode. These included physical examination and clinical scoring, echocardiography, arterial blood gas measurements, venous blood sampling, intracardiac pressure measurements, and myocardial biopsies, among others.
- Post a month of recovery, physical examinations, echocardiography, and cardiac biomarker analysis were repeated.
- The echocardiographic and pressure measurements were compared with those in 10 healthy control horses.
Results
- All horses exhibited clinical signs of acute pulmonary obstruction and there was a significant increase in right heart pressures.
- Changes in right ventricular function was detected using tissue Doppler and speckle tracking echocardiography.
- While Cardiovascular troponin concentrations did not significantly increase for most horses, one horse showed high levels due to exercise before sampling.
- Neutrophil infiltration was present in two of the myocardial samples.
- Even in remission, asthmatic horses exhibited a thicker right ventricular wall, elevated left ventricular end-systolic eccentricity index at chordal levels, and decreased right ventricular longitudinal strain as compared to control horses.
Conclusion
- The severity of the induced clinical episode was relatively mild, and the number of horses involved was limited due to the invasive nature of the study.
- It was concluded that pulmonary obstruction in asthmatic horses induces pulmonary hypertension, leading to structural and functional changes in the right ventricle.
Cite This Article
APA
Decloedt A, Borowicz H, Slowikowska M, Chiers K, van Loon G, Niedzwiedz A.
(2017).
Right ventricular function during acute exacerbation of severe equine asthma.
Equine Vet J, 49(5), 603-608.
https://doi.org/10.1111/evj.12675 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Large Animal Internal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
- Department of Internal Diseases and Clinic for Horses, Dogs and Cats, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland.
- Department of Internal Diseases and Clinic for Horses, Dogs and Cats, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland.
- Department of Pathology, Bacteriology and Poultry Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
- Department of Large Animal Internal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
- Department of Internal Diseases and Clinic for Horses, Dogs and Cats, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Asthma / physiopathology
- Asthma / veterinary
- Echocardiography
- Heart Ventricles
- Horse Diseases / physiopathology
- Horses
- Prospective Studies
- Ventricular Function, Right / physiology
Citations
This article has been cited 9 times.- Bevevino KE, Cohen ND, Gordon SG, Navas de Solis C. Feasibility of a point-of-care ultrasound protocol for cardiorespiratory evaluation of horses in different clinical settings. J Vet Intern Med 2023 May-Jun;37(3):1223-1232.
- 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.
- Ceriotti S, Bullone M, Leclere M, Ferrucci F, Lavoie JP. Severe asthma is associated with a remodeling of the pulmonary arteries in horses. PLoS One 2020;15(10):e0239561.
- Park T, Hong S, Murray L, Lee J, Shah A, Mesa JC, Lee H, Couetil L, Lee CH. Wearable smart textile band for continuous equine health monitoring. Biosens Bioelectron 2026 Jan 15;292:118073.
- Dlugopolska D, Siwinska N, Noszczyk-Nowak A. Equine Asthma in a Comparative Perspective: Cardiovascular and Neurological Manifestations of Asthma Across Different Species. Animals (Basel) 2025 Aug 12;15(16).
- van Spijk JN, Junge HK, Eberhardt C, Wolf N, Vogt D, Zscherpe P, Herger E, Straub M, Schwarzwald CC. Evaluation of Subjective Assessment of Right Heart Size and Function Using Standard 2D-Echocardiographic Recordings in Horses With and Without Pulmonary Hypertension. J Vet Intern Med 2025 Jul-Aug;39(4):e70145.
- Holbrook T, Hernandez J, McCarrel T, Lester G, Sleeper M, Domenig O, Adin D. Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System Profiling in Horses Before and After Exercise. J Vet Intern Med 2025 Mar-Apr;39(2):e70036.
- Mańkowska A, Witkowska D. The Most Common Environmental Risk Factors for Equine Asthma-A Narrative Review. Animals (Basel) 2024 Jul 14;14(14).
- Mozo Vives B, Mainguy-Seers S, Lavoie JP. Comparative study of the bronchodilator efficacy and adverse effects of salbutamol and hyoscine butylbromide in horses with severe asthma. J Vet Intern Med 2024 May-Jun;38(3):1835-1841.
Use Nutrition Calculator
Check if your horse's diet meets their nutrition requirements with our easy-to-use tool Check your horse's diet with our easy-to-use tool
Talk to a Nutritionist
Discuss your horse's feeding plan with our experts over a free phone consultation Discuss your horse's diet over a phone consultation
Submit Diet Evaluation
Get a customized feeding plan for your horse formulated by our equine nutritionists Get a custom feeding plan formulated by our nutritionists
