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Guineas Heroine Mawj Withdrawn From Coronation With Cough

Godolphin homebred Mawj (Ire) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}), who won the G1 QIPCO 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in May, has been withdrawn from Friday's G1 Coronation S. at Royal Ascot due to a cough, trainer Saeed bin Suroor announced.

Successful in the G2 Duchess Of Cambridge S. and third in the G1 Cheveley Park S. at two, the daughter of Modern Ideals (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) has won all three of her 3-year-old starts. The 'TDN Rising Star' appeared twice at Meydan in conditions races and won the Jumeirah Fillies Classic over seven furlongs and the Jumeirah Fillies Guineas going a mile this winter.

“Mawj appeared quiet after exercising this morning and produced a dirty scope,” said bin Suroor. “She is coughing at moment, so won't be able to run in the Coronation S.

“It's disappointing to miss Royal Ascot, but we will give her time to recover and we can hopefully look forward to the rest of the season.”

The post Guineas Heroine Mawj Withdrawn From Coronation With Cough appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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When Is A Cough Just A Cough?

Almost everyone knows that one horse who coughs when his rider first gets on. His cough may sound like he's clearing his lungs or the horse may stop moving, throw his head down and cough from deep in his lungs. Most of these horses then go right back to work, happy to do their job, with no more coughing episodes.

A horse who coughs a few times at the beginning of a ride may be clearing mucus from behind his larynx. Some horses create more mucus than others, so a cough for them is normal. If the horse has no other trouble breathing and isn't ill, his coughing may be a natural reaction to beginning work, when he breathes deeper.

A horse coughs when his esophagus is irritated by something, whether that's dust, pollen or cold air. The horse rapidly expels air in an effort to remove irritants from the respiratory tract; this is the cough that is heard.

Prolonged coughing or coughs that become more frequent, a call to the veterinarian is warranted.

Does Asthma Play A Role in DDSP?

Dorsal displacement of the soft palate (DDSP) is a relatively common, performance-limiting condition in horses where the soft palate shifts to obstruct the horse's airway, usually while the horse is working. Once the soft palate has moved, the horse generally must swallow and slow down to move it back.

Much research has been done on upper respiratory tract conditions that may cause DDSP, but little attention has been paid to the possible role lower-airway conditions like asthma might play.

Drs. Kinga Joó, ÁgnesPovázsai, Zsófia Nyerges-Bohák, Ottó Szenci and Orsolya Kutasi completed endoscopic examinations of 53 pleasure and sport horses at rest and while exercising. Twenty-two of the horses had mild or moderate asthma while 31 horses were severely asthmatic. They also collected mucus from the trachea and lower airways using a tracheal wash and bronchoalveolar lavage.

The scientists used a nasal occlusion test on resting horses. This test mimics pressure changes that might occur while the horse is working. This test caused the soft palate to displace in many of the horses.

The team found that 65 percent of the horses with mild asthma had soft palates that displaced during the nasal occlusion test; 79 percent of horses with severe asthma displaced their palate during the nasal occlusion test. All of the horses with severe asthma had DDSP while exercising.

Horses that had DDSP coughed, but didn't make the typical gurgling sound heard in racehorses when their soft palate slips. The research team suggests that this may be because the horses have a lower rate of airflow than racehorses.

The team recommends that veterinarians treat the upper and lower respiratory tracts as one unit since lower respiratory tract disease, including asthma, can cause upper-respiratory dysfunction and upper-respiratory obstructions can be a factor in lower-respiratory issues.

Stall-Side Test Can Help Determine If A Cough Is Contagious

A coughing horse isn't always an immediate concern, but sometimes his cough can be caused by more than just inhaled dust. A new stall-side blood test can help determine if his cough is caused by a chronic inflammatory condition or infectious disease. If the cough is caused by an infectious disease, it's important to take immediate steps to protect other horses on the farm.

Drs. Molly Vinera, Melissa Mazan, Daniela Bedenice, Samantha Mapes and Nicola Pusterla created a study to test for the significance of the protein serum amyloid (SAA) in the blood of horse's with various respiratory conditions. The presence of SAA is indicative of inflammation; it has been used to evaluate and monitor colic and joint disease treatment.

The research team reviewed records of 167 horses that were sent to clinics for respiratory issues; they then analyzed stored serum samples related to each case. The scientists divided the horses into four groups: horses with equine influenza virus (EIV), horses with equine herpesvirus-4 (EHV-4), horses with strangles and horses with heaves. Serum samples from an additional 40 healthy horses served as controls.

They then used an available stall-side test to determine SAA levels in the stored samples. The results of the test showed that all horses with respiratory issues had higher SAA levels then the control horses. Horses that had equine influenza or other infectious respiratory diseases had significantly higher SAA levels than the horses that had heaves or other noninfectious inflammatory conditions.

The team concludes that these findings suggest that stall-side SAA tests can be a useful first step in diagnosing the cause of equine coughs: It allows for the differentiation between infectious and non-infectious respiratory problems, which can help veterinarians make better treatment and management recommendations.

Read the full study here.