Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses
Mild–moderate equine asthma (MEA) is a common respiratory disorder among racehorses, characterized by lower airway inflammation. Although it is generally agreed that MEA causes poor performance, contrasting results have been reported about the effects of tracheal mucus and the leukocyte populations...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2022-11-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/12/22/3228 |
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| author | Chiara Maria Lo Feudo Luca Stucchi Bianca Conturba Giovanni Stancari Francesco Ferrucci |
| author_facet | Chiara Maria Lo Feudo Luca Stucchi Bianca Conturba Giovanni Stancari Francesco Ferrucci |
| author_sort | Chiara Maria Lo Feudo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Mild–moderate equine asthma (MEA) is a common respiratory disorder among racehorses, characterized by lower airway inflammation. Although it is generally agreed that MEA causes poor performance, contrasting results have been reported about the effects of tracheal mucus and the leukocyte populations of the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) on performance. This study aims to investigate the associations between airway inflammation and fitness parameters measured during an incremental treadmill test on Standardbred racehorses. For this purpose, the clinical records of 116 Standardbreds subjected to a diagnostic protocol for poor performance were retrospectively reviewed. Parametric and nonparametric statistics were used to evaluate the relationships between endoscopic scores, BAL cytological results, and fitness parameters. Moreover, horses were divided into MEA and non-MEA groups and into neutrophilic, eosinophilic–mastocytic, and mixed MEA groups; fitness parameters were compared between groups. Neutrophils percentages were inversely correlated with the speed at a heart rate of 200 bpm, the speed and heart rate at a plasma lactate concentration of 4 mmol/L (VLa4 and HRLa4), and the maximal speed, while they were positively correlated with higher lactate concentrations. Moreover, significant differences were detected between different MEA subtypes concerning VLa4, HRLa4, and lactate concentrations. These results suggest that airway neutrophilic inflammation impairs athletic capacity in Standardbreds. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T18:31:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4bd6d487b920450ab873bede59ab94a1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T18:31:06Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-4bd6d487b920450ab873bede59ab94a12023-11-24T07:30:18ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152022-11-011222322810.3390/ani12223228Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred RacehorsesChiara Maria Lo Feudo0Luca Stucchi1Bianca Conturba2Giovanni Stancari3Francesco Ferrucci4Equine Sports Medicine Laboratory “Franco Tradati”, Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of Milan, 26900 Lodi, ItalyEquine Unit, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of Milan, 26900 Lodi, ItalyEquine Unit, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of Milan, 26900 Lodi, ItalyEquine Unit, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of Milan, 26900 Lodi, ItalyEquine Sports Medicine Laboratory “Franco Tradati”, Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of Milan, 26900 Lodi, ItalyMild–moderate equine asthma (MEA) is a common respiratory disorder among racehorses, characterized by lower airway inflammation. Although it is generally agreed that MEA causes poor performance, contrasting results have been reported about the effects of tracheal mucus and the leukocyte populations of the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) on performance. This study aims to investigate the associations between airway inflammation and fitness parameters measured during an incremental treadmill test on Standardbred racehorses. For this purpose, the clinical records of 116 Standardbreds subjected to a diagnostic protocol for poor performance were retrospectively reviewed. Parametric and nonparametric statistics were used to evaluate the relationships between endoscopic scores, BAL cytological results, and fitness parameters. Moreover, horses were divided into MEA and non-MEA groups and into neutrophilic, eosinophilic–mastocytic, and mixed MEA groups; fitness parameters were compared between groups. Neutrophils percentages were inversely correlated with the speed at a heart rate of 200 bpm, the speed and heart rate at a plasma lactate concentration of 4 mmol/L (VLa4 and HRLa4), and the maximal speed, while they were positively correlated with higher lactate concentrations. Moreover, significant differences were detected between different MEA subtypes concerning VLa4, HRLa4, and lactate concentrations. These results suggest that airway neutrophilic inflammation impairs athletic capacity in Standardbreds.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/12/22/3228equine asthmaequine respiratory medicineequine sports medicineequine performancetreadmill testpoor performance |
| spellingShingle | Chiara Maria Lo Feudo Luca Stucchi Bianca Conturba Giovanni Stancari Francesco Ferrucci Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses Animals equine asthma equine respiratory medicine equine sports medicine equine performance treadmill test poor performance |
| title | Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses |
| title_full | Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses |
| title_fullStr | Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses |
| title_short | Impact of Lower Airway Inflammation on Fitness Parameters in Standardbred Racehorses |
| title_sort | impact of lower airway inflammation on fitness parameters in standardbred racehorses |
| topic | equine asthma equine respiratory medicine equine sports medicine equine performance treadmill test poor performance |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/12/22/3228 |
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