{"id":30233,"date":"2025-07-25T10:26:37","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T14:26:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/?p=30233"},"modified":"2025-07-25T10:26:39","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T14:26:39","slug":"pvr-s2025-asthmatic-horses-can-breathe-easier-thanks-to-purdue-health-and-human-sciences-and-college-of-veterinary-medicine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/pvr-s2025-asthmatic-horses-can-breathe-easier-thanks-to-purdue-health-and-human-sciences-and-college-of-veterinary-medicine.php","title":{"rendered":"Asthmatic Horses Can Breathe Easier Thanks to Purdue Health and Human Sciences and College of Veterinary Medicine"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A collaboration between the Purdue University School of Health Sciences and the Purdue College of Veterinary Medicine will enable horses to breathe easier. In turn, their human owners will too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chang Geun Lee, a PhD candidate in Health Sciences, and Jae Hong Park, PhD, associate professor of Health Sciences, teamed up with Dr. Laurent Cou\u00ebtil, professor of Large Animal Internal Medicine, to assist asthmatic horses. According to Cou\u00ebtil, most horses in the United States have some degree of asthma while 14% have severe asthma. These asthma attacks can significantly impact the overall health of the animal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Park\u2019s success in researching and developing human respirators, namely for welders in manufacturing facilities, caught the attention of Cou\u00ebtil some years ago. In 2020, he wondered if Park could develop something similar for horses. The project gained momentum after Lee joined Park\u2019s lab. With a background in mechanical engineering and experience as an engineer and designer in the industry, Lee brought valuable skills to the team. Months of work later, the researchers created an equine respirator that fits snugly on a bridle.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Leila
Leila stylishly models the new equine respirator. (Tim Brouk)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The team disclosed the innovation to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization and it is currently optioned by an industry partner looking to bring the innovation to market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have been working to protect human health, but humans are not the only creatures, not the only living things in the world. We have to protect animals as well, because we love animals,\u201d Lee explained. \u201cWe are living together in this nature. So, I\u2019m excited to use my skills and knowledge to protect the animals as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Making the horse respirator was not easy because it had to meet different needs than a human one. It couldn\u2019t cover the mouth, since horses need to eat and drink freely, and it only needed to cover the nose. After kicking around \u201chundreds\u201d of ideas, seven different prototypes were 3-D printed and assembled to fit different breeds of horses. A soft silicone seal helps the respirator stay in place and a foam filter greatly reduces dust and other particles that harm the animal\u2019s lungs. The 3-D printed plastic is flexible for a comfortable fit around the horse\u2019s nose and upper lip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two one-way valves are found on each respirator at the horse\u2019s nostrils for exhaling. Fresh air comes in through a filter on the upper part of the respirator across the bridge of the horse\u2019s muzzle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The researchers put the animals through various activities throughout testing \u2014 drinking and eating were especially monitored. Sensors were fit into the respirators to measure particulate concentration inside the respirator and outside of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The animals eventually get used to wearing the devices. \u201cHorses can go about their normal life and wear this 24\/7, which is really what the goal is here,\u201d Cou\u00ebtil said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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