Problemas respiratórios e de claudicação em cavalos crioulos atletas

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate two important causes of reduced performance in sport horses. In the first study, clinical records of 201 Criollo horses, 5.59±2.11 years of age, that underwent physical examination due to lameness or reduced performance in order to document the frequency of lameness problems in these horses. A total of 223 problems were diagnosed. In the forelimbs (47.08%; n=105) and in the hindlimbs (52.9%; n=118). In the forelimbs the pain was located above the fetlock joint in 17.14% (18/105), 14.30% (15/105) in the fetlock and 68.60% (72/105) distal to the fetlock. In the hindlimbs the source of lameness was frequently located in the hock (78.80%; 93/118). Lameness above the tarsus occurred in 17.80% (21/118) and below the tarsus in 3.4% (4/118) of the cases. This study showed that Criollo horses present similar lameness problems as seen in other breeds competing in rodeo disciplines. In the second study, 38 Criollo horses, 6.63±1.53 years of age, underwent endoscopic examination of the upper and lower airways, during competitions, aiming to document the frequency of respiratory problems and evaluate its impact on the Criollo horse s performance by their competition scores. Lymphoid hyperplasia was found in 57.89% (22/38) and left laryngeal hemiplegia (grade II) in 7.89% (3/38). Exercise induced pulmonary haemorrhage was diagnosed in 21.05% (8/38). Lower respiratory inflammation indicated by the presence of mucous or purulent secretion in the trachea was seen in 78.94% (30/38). There was no difference in the performance scores between horses diagnosed with EIPH and the ones considered normal (p>0.05). However, horses with mucous/purulent secretion in the trachea showed lower performance scores compared to the EIPH group (p=0.01). The high frequency of Criollo horses in this study showing inflammation in the lower respiratory tract indicates that endoscopic examination would help to identify horses with problems before the competitions.