b'YOUR GUIDE TO THE 2017 AAEP CONVENTIONfound that mucous scores of 2 and higher and 3 and higher are associated with decreased performance in race-horses and sport horses, respectively.Severe equine asthma (recurrent airway obstruction, RAO or heaves) Studies have shown that horses with severe asthma fatigued sooner than unaffected horses and exhibited signs of decreased respiratory capacity. Researchers learned that feeding affected horses a low-dust diet and omega-3 polyun-saturated fatty acids can help improve respiratory function.Exercise-induced pulmonary hemor-rhage (EIPH) Scientists have long Findings include: As EIPH score increases, so does the affected horses Helping Horsesstudied EIPHs impact on racehorses. less likely to win races as their EIPH scores increase; and Grade 4 EIPH is Breathe Better distance behind the winner; horses are most likely to impact finishing position.ARND BRONKHORST Understanding how pulmonary disease impacts performance can help veterinar-ERICA LARSON; horses use aerobic energy and, so, mustians diagnose and treat issues that could CLAIR THUNES, PHD be able to consume oxygen optimally. be impairing horses athleticism.Fortunately, he said, horses large hearts How Pulmonary Disease Impactsand lungs are geared toward taking in andAirway Disease in Sport Horses: Equine Performance using oxygen for energy production. Yet,Listen, Look, Sampleter doesnt flow freely. The same cantor for performance, Coutil said. ratory effort, and nasal discharge are P inch or put a kink in a hose, and wa- the respiratory system is the limiting fac- Frequent coughing, increased respi-be said for a horses airways, whichEven a mild degree of airway obstruc- obvious signs of pulmonary disease in supply his body with the oxygen it needstion or pulmonary disease may furtherhorses. But not all signs are so apparent. for energy production. And while othercompromise oxygen delivery to tissuesIn fact, said Renaud Lguillette, DVM, body systems generally adapt well to exer- and potentially lead to decreased perfor- MSc, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, ACVSMR, the cise, the respiratory system is less capablemance in horses exercising at or aboveless discernable clinical signs are what of doing so, making it an important oneVO 2 max (maximum oxygen consumptionmost frequently accompany equine lower for veterinarians to understand. rate), such as racehorses, he added. airway disease, making it challenging for Horses need 100% respiratory capac- Pulmonary diseases that can reduceveterinarians to diagnose. ity to perform at their best, said Laurentperformance include: Lguillette, an associate professor of Mild equine asthma (inflammatory Coutil, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, profes-equine internal medicine and Calgary sor and section head of large animalairway disease, IAD) One effect of mildChair in Equine Sports Medicine at the internal medicine at Purdue Universitysasthma is increased mucous accumula- University of Calgary Faculty of Vet-College of Veterinary Medicine, in Westtion in the airways. Researchers haveerinary Medicine, in Alberta, Canada, Lafayette, Indiana. He reviewed how pul- reviewed tools veterinarians can use to monary disease can impact performance. diagnose pulmonary disease, focusing on Energy required for muscle contractionnoninfectious inflammatory conditions.is produced via anaerobic or aerobic me- Respiratory issues are some of the tabolism. Anaerobic metabolism requiresmost frequently diagnosed conditions in stored substances such as glycogen and,sport horses evaluated for poor perfor-AAEPwhile it produces bursts of energy, its notmance, he said, and one of the leading @AAEPHorseDocs sustainable. It also produces lactic acid,causes of training disruptions. which leads to muscle fatigue and sore- Dr. Toll: The leading causeKnowing the clinical signs of lung ness. Aerobic metabolism requires oxy- of poor performance in apathologies allows veterinarians to col-gen; while its produced at a slower pace,horse is overexpectation bylect the most relevant information from it lasts longer. In most cases, said Coutil,its owner. #AAEP17 owners to increase diagnostic accuracy, A50 TheHorse.com/AAEP2017 AAEP Wrap-Up THE HORSEMarch 2018'