Vetnews September 2022: Post-Mortem Diagnosis of Nutritional Myopathy in Livestock and Horses

Introduction

Nutritional myopathy is primarily the result of selenium deficiency, usually accompanied by concurrent vitamin E deficiency. This condition is most commonly encountered in young animals due to inadequate dietary intake. Pigs, cattle and sheep are most susceptible, horses and goats are moderately susceptible, while individual cases have been reported in dogs, cats, primates and a variety of herbivorous and omnivorous zoo animals as well as "farmed" antelope species. Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Vitamin E are all-natural antioxidants, so there is a potential role for low vitamin A in the nutritional myopathy syndromes of livestock and horses.