Latest News – The Horse

“I used to think I knew how to evaluate a horse’s movement for lameness, until I started to look more carefully. Two different highly experienced practitioners can evaluate a lame horse, and come up with different [lame] legs,” said Kevin Keegan, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVS, associate professor of veterinary medicine and surgery at the University of Missouri, in his presentation on lameness

While it might seem like any method of treating a horse would be termed a therapeutic option, equine veterinarians use this term to describe treatments that are generally considered alternative options to more heavily studied Western modalities. As such, the Therapeutic Options forum held during the Denver American Association of Equine Practitioners convention on Dec. 4-8, 2004, focused

James Kenney, DVM, of New Jersey, and Mary Bell, VMD, of Canada, chaired an open session to discuss therapeutic options to a room packed with 60-70 practitioners at the 50th annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention in Denver, Colo., Dec. 4-8, 2004. Through a show of hands, the majority of folks in the room used therapeutic options themselves or were

K.W. Hinchcliff, BVSc, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, visiting fellow at the University of Melbourne in Australia, at the 50th annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention in Denver, Colo., Dec. 4-8, 2004 discussed the effect of EIPH on race times when furosemide was not administered. The study involved examinations of horses competing in competitions where furosemide is not

When a horse has to be on an antibiotics for long periods, the oral route of administration is preferable. However, the choices available to horse owners are limited. Cornelia D. Nieuwoudt, PharmD, director of the pharmacy at Texas A&M University and formerly with Johns Hopkins University, discussed using a gel formulation of the antibiotic enrofloxacin in horses at the 50th annual American

This disease has nothing to do with birds; it got its name from the inflammation seen in the chest region of some affected horses that makes them look like they have a puffed-out pigeon’s breast. Also known as dryland distemper, the disease is caused by Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis. Research at the University of California, Davis, has indicated that insect vectors play a significant

Septicemia is loosely defined as bacteria or bacterial components in the bloodstream. In foals, septicemia is the most common cause of death in the first week of life, noted Simon Peek, BVSc, MRCVS, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, clinical associate professor of large animal internal medicine, theriogenology, and infectious diseases at the University of Wisconsin’s School of Veterinary Medicine, at the 50th

Rhodococcus equi is the most common cause of severe pneumonia in foals. However, despite intensive research, the reasons some foals get this pneumonia and some don’t are not known.

Aleman reported on a genetic problem called equine malignant hyperthermia (EMH) that can make simple anesthesia deadly for some horses. Malignant hyperthermia-like episodes in the horse have been associated with drugs such as halothane, isoflurane, succinylcholine, and caffeine.

In horses with HC, the skin separates between the deep and superficial dermis. There is no cure. A DNA test for carrier identification is not yet available, and therefore, managed breeding strategy is currently the only option for reducing the incidence of HC.

Stashak says many of the newer dressings are designed to create a moist wound healing environment, which allows the wound fluids to remain in contact with wound. A moist wound that is free of infection provides an environment rich in white blood cells, enzymes, and growth factors beneficial to wound healing.