Physical and electrocardiographic evaluation of horses used for wagon traction

Bomfim, Monalisa Medrado; Sattin, William Rodrigo; Carvalho, Suélen Faria de; Gobesso, Alexandre Augusto de Oliveira; Dória, R.S.G.; Dellova, Deise Carla Almeida Leite

doi:10.1590/1678-4162-9248

Cited by 1 publication

(2 citation statements)

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“…Second-degree AV block is also frequent in clinically healthy horses at rest [37][38][39][40], which is attributed to fluctuations in the autonomic tone, as horses naturally exhibit a high vagal tone [31]. Wandering atrial pacemakers can be caused by a higher vagal tone, a physiological finding that has been previously described by several authors [36,39,41,42]. Sinus arrhythmia can usually be diagnosed in horses at rest because of their high vagal tone.…”

Section: Electrocardiographic Findingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Health Status of Horses Used for at Least Six Complete Cycles of Loxoscelic Antivenom Production

Miranda,

Antunes,

Minozzo

et al. 2023

Toxins

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Antivenom production against Loxosceles venom relies on horses being immunized and bled for plasma harvest. One horse can partake in several cycles of antivenom production, which will require years of constant venom and adjuvant inoculation and bleeding. The actual impact on the health of horses that participate in several antivenom-producing cycles is unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the general health status of horses that underwent at least six cycles of loxoscelic antivenom production. Seven crossbred horses that had partaken in six to eight complete antivenom-producing cycles were used and established as the immunized group (IG). Under the same handling and general management, eleven horses were established as the control group (CG). The horses were evaluated regarding their general clinical status and had their blood sampled, and an ECG recorded. The IG presented lower RBC and PCV, despite keeping values within inferior limits for the species. Renal function was not impaired, and liver-related enzymes were higher than those in the CG, probably due to liver exertion from immunoglobulin synthesis. ECG showed some abnormalities in the IG, such as atrioventricular block and a wandering atrial pacemaker, corroborated by an increase in CK-MB. The cardiovascular abnormalities were mainly found in the horses that participated in several antivenom-producing cycles. The overall results indicate that these horses had some impairment of their general health status. Once available, some alternative, less toxic antigens should replace the venom for immunization of horses used for antivenom production.

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Section: Electrocardiographic Findingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Sinus arrhythmia can usually be diagnosed in horses at rest because of their high vagal tone. Sinus tachycardia, if not accompanied by other clinical findings, might be related to excitement due to handling or stress [31,35,39].…”

Section: Electrocardiographic Findingsmentioning

confidence: 99%