Horses Needed for Study of Silica-Related Disease

Silicosis associated osteoporosis (SAO) affects pulmonary function and results in skeletal weakness. SAO has been reported in horses of varying ages living in areas where the soil contains a large amount of silica dioxide. Horses inhale crystals of the mineral as they graze, and the situation becomes worse during dry periods when the soil is increasingly dusty.

Affected horses may become exercise-intolerant and short of breath due to lung inflammation. Through a process that is not yet understood, the disease also causes severe osteoporosis characterized by lameness, bone deformities, and fractures. No cure has been found, and most horses with SAO are euthanized.

Researchers at the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine have been studying SAO for a number of years in an effort to develop diagnostic techniques, treatment protocols, and methods of protecting horses from the disease. They are presently looking for horses 10 years old or older with SAO that warrants humane euthanasia due to poor quality of life. Horses with SAO that are being euthanized for other reasons are also useful to disease understanding. Donated horses will be humanely euthanized in the large animal clinic for immediate collection of study samples.

To learn more about donating a suitable horse, please contact Regina Zavodovskaya, D.V.M., at rzav@ucdavis.edu or 530-754-0156.