Gastric ulceration in Persian Arab horses in Iran: frequency, haematology and biochemistry

Gastric endoscopy was performed in the 24 Persian Arab horses from several race training in Tehran and Tabriz for detection of gastric ulcer. Gastric ulcer was evident in 14 Persian Arab horses (58.3%). Ten out of 14 ulcers were in nonglandular region of the stomach. The horses with the history of long term treatment with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) had high prevalence of the gastric ulcer in the glandular mucosa. In this study the prevalence of gastric ulceration was higher in horses with active training program than others. Twelve out of 14 (71%) horses with gastric ulcers had a history of active training. The difference of two groups in respect to training was not statistically significant (P>0.05). The number of monocytes was significantly lower and concentrations of potassium were significantly higher in horses with gastric ulcer (P<0.05). The results of this study showed that the frequency of gastric ulceration in the training Persian Arab horses was relatively high. Further studies are required to evaluate the clinical importance of ulcer in these horses.