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Home / Equine Research Bank / BMC Vet Res / The prevalence of ocular diseases in polish Arabian horses.
BMC veterinary research2017; 13(1); 319; doi: 10.1186/s12917-017-1252-8

The prevalence of ocular diseases in polish Arabian horses.

Abstract: Equine ocular diseases pose a medical challenge due to long-lasting and cost-consuming therapies as well as economic issues associated with potential decrease in value of affected horses. The scale of the problem is significant but difficult to precisely define because epidemiological data is limited and lacks consistency in presentation. To date, no retrospective studies specifically investigating Arabian horses have been published. Results: The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the prevalence of ocular lesions and define the ocular diseases present in Arabian horses from breeding farms in Poland. Clinical and ophthalmic examination of 615 Arabian horses at Polish breeding farms (15% of Arabian population in Poland) were performed and medical history from the previous 5 years was analyzed. Data was obtained from review of veterinary archives and epidemiological interview of the resident veterinarian at each farm. The prevalence of ocular diseases was 9.75%. The following pathologies were diagnosed (with their respective prevalence): equine recurrent uveitis (ERU; 5.5%); cataract not related to ERU (3.3%); non-visual eyes (1.13%); posttraumatic lesions (0.8%); glaucoma (0.16%). Conclusions: In this study, ERU was the most common ocular disease identified in Arabian horses in Poland. Its prevalence was lower than usually reported in Europe and the United States. There was no sex or farm predisposition but ocular disease prevalence increased with age. Other severe ocular pathologies were also observed, confirming that ocular diseases remain an important clinical problem.
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Publication Date: 2017-11-07 PubMed ID: 29115950PubMed Central: PMC5678559DOI: 10.1186/s12917-017-1252-8Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

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The research article presents a study on the prevalence of ocular diseases in Arabian horses in Poland, including an investigation into specific conditions, their occurrence rate, and contributing factors such as age.

Objective and Methodology of the Study

  • This research is a cross-sectional study, aimed at investigating the frequency and type of ocular diseases in Arabian horses raised on Polish breeding farms.
  • A total of 615 Arabian horses, which amounts to about 15% of this breed’s population in Poland, were clinically and ophthalmologically examined.
  • The study involved an analysis of the medical history of these horses from the past five years.
  • Information was collected from veterinary archives as well as through epidemiological interviews with the resident veterinarians at each farm.

Findings of the Study

  • The prevalence of ocular diseases in the examined population was found to be 9.75%.
  • Several types of ocular conditions were identified, with varying rates of incidence. These included Equine Recurrent Uveitis (ERU, 5.5%), non-ERU related cataract (3.3%), non-visual eyes (1.13%), post-traumatic lesions (0.8%) and glaucoma (0.16%).
  • ERU was the most commonly diagnosed eye disease in the studied Arabian horses. Nonetheless, its occurrence was lesser than what is typically reported in Europe and the United States.

Conclusions

  • There was no evidence indicating that gender or specific farm environments made the horses more predisposed to having ocular diseases. However, it was observed that the prevalence of these conditions increased with age.
  • Other serious ocular diseases were also identified, underlining the assertion that eye-related illnesses are a key health problem in Arabian horses.
  • The investigation allows a better understanding of the scale and nature of ocular diseases in Arabian horses in Poland, offering valuable insights for their proper medical and economic management.

Cite This Article

APA
Paschalis-Trela K, Cywińska A, Trela J, Czopowicz M, Kita J, Witkowski L. (2017). The prevalence of ocular diseases in polish Arabian horses. BMC Vet Res, 13(1), 319. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-017-1252-8

Publication

BMC veterinary research
ISSN: 1746-6148
NlmUniqueID: 101249759
Country: England
Language: English
Volume: 13
Issue: 1
Pages: 319

Researcher Affiliations

Paschalis-Trela, Katarzyna
  • Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Nowoursynowska 159c, 02-786, Warsaw, Poland. katarzyna.paschalis@gmail.com.
  • TRELA VETs Referrals, Warsaw, Poland. katarzyna.paschalis@gmail.com.
Cywińska, Anna
  • Division of Pathophysiology, Department of Pathology and Veterinary Diagnostics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Nowoursynowska 159c, 02-786, Warsaw, Poland.
Trela, Jan
  • TRELA VETs Referrals, Warsaw, Poland.
Czopowicz, Michał
  • Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Nowoursynowska 159c, 02-786, Warsaw, Poland.
Kita, Jerzy
  • Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Nowoursynowska 159c, 02-786, Warsaw, Poland.
Witkowski, Lucjan
  • Laboratory of Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW, Warsaw, Nowoursynowska 159c, 02-786, Warsaw, Poland.

MeSH Terms

  • Animals
  • Eye Diseases / epidemiology
  • Eye Diseases / veterinary
  • Eye Injuries / epidemiology
  • Eye Injuries / veterinary
  • Female
  • Horse Diseases / epidemiology
  • Horses
  • Male
  • Poland / epidemiology
  • Prevalence
  • Retrospective Studies

Conflict of Interest Statement

ETHICS APPROVAL AND CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE: The study was approved by the 3rd Local Commission for Ethics in Animal Experiments (Decision No. 24/2011). Written consent was obtained from the owners of the animals used in this study. CONSENT FOR PUBLICATION: Not applicable. COMPETING INTERESTS: The authors declare that they have no competing interests PUBLISHER’S NOTE: Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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Citations

This article has been cited 9 times.
  1. Khalid E, Tartor YH, Ammar AM, Abdelaziz R, Mahmmod Y, Abdelkhalek A. Controlling drug-resistant bacteria in Arabian horses: bacteriophage cocktails for treating wound infections. Front Vet Sci 2025;12:1609955.
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