Latest News – The Horse

Christy Malazdrewich, DVM, MVSc, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, assistant clinical professor at the University of Minnesota, discussed metabolic problems at Horseman’s Day at the 50th annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention in Denver, Colo., Dec. 4-8, 2004. She gave clear-cut descriptions of two baffling conditions–Cushing’s disease and metabolic syndrome. She opened with this

At Horseman’s Day at the 50th annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention in Denver, Colo., Dec. 4-8, 2004, Sally Vivrette, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, of Triangle Equine Veterinary Services in Cary, N.C., discussed strategies for keeping the performance horse healthy and fit.

“Maintaining a performance or pleasure horse represents a substantial investment of time and

Mary DeLorey, DVM, owner of Northwest Equine Dentistry in Washington, began Horseman’s Day at the 50th annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention in Denver, Colo., Dec. 4-8, 2004, with a presentation titled “Everything You Wanted to Know About Equine Dentistry.” “Just a float isn’t enough anymore,” she told her listeners. “Comprehensive dental care is needed.” She said

During the foaling season, Bain said, veterinarians are frequently called upon to deal with a foal that is the product of a mare with placentitis. These foals, he said, can range from being extremely early–300 days–with small size and organ function incompatible with life to a full-sized foal nearer to full-term gestation with minimal effects.

Performance of a thorough placental examination, he said, requires a basic understanding of placental anatomy and some familiarity with the gross features found in a normal placenta.

The single most important cause of premature delivery of a foal is placentitis. It accounts for nearly one-third of late-term abortions and fetal mortality in the first day of life.

What impact can a salmonella outbreak at a veterinary hospital and what can be done to prevent it? As part of a study to determine what could be done to cut down on the harmful bacteria, a footbath for workers was compared to disinfectant misting, she said.

The mechanism of action of non-specific immunostimulation is induction of macrophages to produce proinflammatory cytokines that drive a T-1-based (helper cells) immune system response. Immunostimulation therapy may not be effective in patients with acute, fulminating (suddenly occurring) infections, because the immune response is (already) maximally stimulated by the pathogen.

Wayne McIlwraith, BVSc, PhD, DSc, FRCVS, DrMedVet (hc), Dipl. ACVS, director of Colorado State University’s Gail Holmes Equine Orthopaedic Research Center, gave a talk on Licensed Medications, “Generic” Medications, Compounding, and Nutraceuticals—What has Been Scientifically Validated, Where Do We Encounter Scientific Mistruth, and Where are We Legally?

The long title was needed for the

Milton McClure, DVM; and Gary Norwood, DVM, chaired an open forum on racing at the 50th annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention in Denver, Colo., Dec. 4-8, 2004. Bobby Lewis, DVM, the AAEP’s representative to the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC), gave an update on what had transpired with that group in the past year. The biggest news was that the

Approximately 55,000 horses are slaughtered each year in the United States. These horses are most often sent to a processing facility because they are no longer serviceable, are infirm, dangerous, or their owners are no longer able to care for them. The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP), a professional association with a membership of 7,500 equine veterinarians and veterinar

The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) has added the welfare of unwanted horses in the United States to its priority list for the foreseeable future, according to AAEP leaders during the annual convention Dec. 5-8, 2004, in Denver, Colo.

While the AAEP’s stand against the national bill that bans slaughter of horses has been seen as a negative by many horse owners,

Performance horse veterinarians treat everything from the cutting horse to the dressage mount, but when it comes to issues pertinent to their practice, they are much alike. The problems of online and traveling pharmacies, clients’ administering medications, drug testing at shows, and compounding were discussed at the performance forum at the 2004 convention of the American Association of

Dyson and her colleagues discovered in a recent study that there were no significant differences in the angles of the distal phalanx (P3, or the coffin bone) between horses of mixed breeds, with and without DDFT injury. However, they found that when Thoroughbreds were considered separately from the other breeds, horses with DDFT lesions were more likely to have a more acute P3 angle.