Internal Medicine

Veterinary cardiology involves the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the heart and lungs.

A diagnosis of heart disease can be determined by a veterinarian after a thorough review of your horse's medical history, a physical examination, and careful interpretation of diagnostic tests and images.

Two common heart conditions that can affect equine performance are murmurs and arrhythmias. Murmurs can be diagnosed through physical examinations and X-rays and arrhythmias are diagnosed with echocardiography, which can show the appearance and function of the heart valves.

When signs of a heart condition are detected, your veterinarian will determine the likelihood of the abnormality affecting your horses health and athletic performance.

Immunology is the branch of veterinary science that studies cells, tissues and organs responsible for detecting foreign agents (antigens) and triggering the defensive action of the immune system.

The immune system is made up of a network of white blood cells, antibodies, and other protective substances that fight off infections, reject foreign invaders, and begin defensive action to protect your horse's health.

When a horse's immune system is not working properly, it can lead to immune-mediated disorders. These can be characterized as an immune system that is either overactive or underactive.

An underactive immune system increases your horse's risk of developing infections. Alternatively, an overactive immune system can lead to the immune system attacking parts of its own body that it misidentifies as foreign, causing what is known as an autoimmune disorder.

Common immune-mediated disorders in horses include IBD, asthma, sweet itch, and equine sarcoids.

Neurology is a branch of veterinary internal medicine that looks at conditions of the brain and spinal cord, as well as neuromuscular dysfunction.

Neurologic issues can affect horses at any age, and clinical signs can result from infectious and non-infectious causes. Neurologic disease can often look like a lameness issue, especially when horses present with poor performance.

The diagnosis of neurologic disease always starts with a detailed clinical examination and should not be based on diagnostic imaging or antibody testing for common infections alone.

Common neurological disorders seen in horses include cervical vertebral stenotic myelopathy (Wobblers), equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM), equine degenerative myeloencephalopathy (EDM), equine motor neuron disease (EMND) and equine herpesvirus-1 myeloencephalopathy (EHM).

Veterinary oncology is the area of veterinary medicine responsible for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

Cancer is a disease that can impact even the fittest horses. The most common form of cancer that horses can develop is skin cancer, with sarcoids, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma occurring most frequently.

Diagnosis of cancer often involves tissue biopsies and cytology. A biopsy is the removal of a small section of a tumor to be examined under a microscope. Cytology is the microscopic analysis of cells from a suspected tumor. It is commonly used as a screening tool to distinguish between cancerous and inflammatory lesions.

Treatment for cancer in horses often consists of a combination of laser-assisted surgical excision and ablation, along with chemotherapy.

Your horse's respiratory system does the essential work of delivering oxygen to the body and eliminating waste gases such as carbon dioxide. 

Respiratory diseases in horses are very common and have a variety of causes. Infectious respiratory diseases can result from bacterial and viral infections in horses of all ages but are particularly common in young horses, especially those kept in larger groups or yards. Non-infectious respiratory diseases are also common and are frequently due to hypersensitivities to allergens in the stable or their environment.

Common respiratory disorders seen in horses include strangles, equine influenza, and herpes viruses. Other infections, such as equine rhinitis viruses and equine adenoviruses, are also prevalent.