Background: The diagnostic value of plain radiography for diagnosing synovial penetration in limb wounds near synovial structures has not been determined. Objectives: To assess diagnostic accuracy of plain radiography to identify synovial penetration in horses with traumatic limb wounds. Study design: Retrospective case study. Methods: Case records of horses presented to the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of Ghent University (2011-2021) with limb wounds near synovial structures were...

Squamous gastric ulceration is a highly prevalent condition in horses used for racing, sport and reproduction. Studies have shown squamous ulceration to affect 70%–95% of horses in race training, 58% of active show horses, 40% of western performance horses and 67%–77% of Thoroughbred broodmares.1 Horses affected with equine gastric ulcer syndrome (EGUS) can show a variety of clinical signs including inappetence, poor body condition, weight loss, behaviour changes or poor performance, while...

Background: Radiological findings in the proximal sesamoid bones (sesamoids) are a persistent source of controversy at Thoroughbred sales, due to inconsistent classification and conflicting assignment of potential clinical importance. Objectives: To define the prevalence of sesamoid findings on sales repository radiographs in yearling and 2-year-old Thoroughbreds and to analyse associations with racing performance. To track the changes in sesamoid findings between 1 and 2 years of age in...

Additional efficacious immunomodulatory treatment is needed for the management of immune-mediated disease in horses. Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) is an immunosuppressive drug that warrants assessment as a viable therapeutic agent for horses. The objective of this study was to evaluate the pharmacokinetics (PK) of multiple-day oral dosing of MMF in healthy horses and to determine the tolerability of this dosing regimen. Six healthy Standardbred mares received MMF 10 mg/kg PO q12h for 7 days in...

Horses with severe equine asthma had higher concentrations of MMP-9 in the BALF. This study determined Tregs and inflammatory cytokines in BALF and peripheral blood (PB) of adult horses with mild and severe asthma and different BALF cytological inflammation profiles. Horses of diverse breeds with asthma (age range: 2-20 years, n = 24) were divided into groups according to the number of points obtained in a standardized clinical scoring system (mild-moderate equine asthma - MEA, severe equine...