Validation of three diagnostic techniques to diagnose subclinical endometritis in mares

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Endometritis in mares remains a significant challenge in broodmare management, ranking as the third most common clinical condition in horses. This inflammatory condition can be classified into acute, chronic, or subclinical forms, all of which can severely impact a mare's fertility, making endometritis a major concern in the horse breeding industry. Timely diagnosis and effective treatment during the breeding season are crucial for successful outcomes. Prebreeding diagnosis should involve a comprehensive approach, including clinical examination, ultrasonography, vaginal examination, uterine culture, cytology, and endometrial biopsy. Despite the variety of diagnostic tools available, pinpointing the cause of infertility continues to be difficult for practitioners, as uterine cultures can yield false positives and negatives, often missing focal infections. Consequently, while endometrial culture remains the most common diagnostic method in the field, recent studies indicate that uterine cytology identifies a higher percentage of mares with endometritis compared to culture. However, cytological examination does not match the accuracy of histological methods, leading to recommendations for combined bacteriological and cytological or histological evaluations for reliable diagnoses. Additionally, the issue of subclinical endometritis has gained attention, as it may present without clinical signs, complicating detection and diagnosis