The Accuracy of Serum Amyloid A in Determining Early Inflammation in Horses After Long-Distance Transportation by Air.
Authors: Oertly Marc, Gerber Vinzenz, Anhold Heinrich, Chan Di-Sien, Pusterla Nicola
Journal: Journal of equine veterinary science
Summary
# Editorial Summary Long-distance air transport poses significant infection risk for competition horses, yet traditional health monitoring relies heavily on rectal temperature—a blunt screening tool that misses early inflammatory responses. Researchers tracked 122 Warmblood horses competing across the 2016 Longines Global Champions Tour, measuring serum amyloid A (SAA) using point-of-care lateral flow immunoassay alongside rectal temperature before flight, at arrival, and 24 hours post-arrival. An SAA threshold of 23 µg/mL at 24 hours post-arrival demonstrated 93.3% sensitivity and 91.3% specificity for distinguishing clinical disease, whereas rectal temperature achieved only 3% sensitivity—rendering it essentially useless for early detection in this context. For practitioners managing traveling horses, this finding suggests that incorporating stall-side SAA testing into post-transport health protocols could substantially improve early identification of subclinical inflammation and potential infection before clinical signs develop, enabling timely intervention and reducing disease transmission risk within competition yards.
Read the full abstract on PubMed
Practical Takeaways
- •Relying on rectal temperature alone to assess health status in traveling sporthorses misses most early infections—consider SAA testing as a more reliable screening tool at arrival and 24 hours post-transport
- •A stall-side SAA test at 24 hours post-arrival can rapidly identify horses developing inflammatory responses before clinical signs become apparent, enabling early intervention
- •For high-value competition horses undergoing air transportation, implementing SAA monitoring as part of health assessment protocols may reduce disease transmission and improve welfare outcomes
Key Findings
- •SAA cutoff value of 23 μg/mL at 24 hours post-arrival correctly distinguished healthy from sick horses with 93.3% sensitivity and 91.3% specificity
- •Rectal temperature had only 3% sensitivity for detecting inflammatory processes in transported horses, making it an unreliable indicator
- •SAA measured via stall-side lateral flow immunoassay is significantly more accurate than body temperature for early detection of travel-associated inflammation in sporthorses