The purpose of this manuscript is to revise and update the previous consensus statement on inflammatory airway disease (IAD) in horses. Since 2007, a large number of scientific articles have been published on the topic and these new findings have led to a significant evolution of our understanding of IAD.
Inflammatory Airway Disease of Horses—Revised Consensus Statement
Horses with heaves, including those with recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) and summer pasture-associated RAO, exhibit marked lower airway inflammation and obstruction associated with frequent coughing, increased respiratory effort at rest and exercise intolerance.Clinical signs and airway obstruction can be reversed by administration of corticosteroids, bronchodilators, or changing the environment. Recurrent airway obstruction principally affects horses over 7 years of age. In contrast, IAD can affect horses of all ages and clinical signs are usually subtle, including poor performance and occasional coughing but with normal breathing at rest. Similarly, airway inflammation in horses with IAD is mild and results in limited pulmonary dysfunction that requires sensitive methods of detection.Both RAO and IAD are also characterised by excessive accumulation of mucus in the airways.
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