Effects of breed, age and gender on equine platelet rich plasma and correlation of platelet count with its physical aspect

ABSTRACT Platelet rich plasma samples from 50 healthy horses of five different breeds (Thoroughbreds - TB, Brazilian Criollo Horses - BCH, Brazilian Sport Horses - BSH, Miniature Horses - MH and Crossbred Horses - CB), were investigated as to breed, age, and gender effect for platelet concentration. Moreover, a score for physical analysis was established to correlate PRP physical aspect with platelet count. Platelet count was performed by an automatic hematology analyzer and by manual count. PRP physical analysis was based on color, aspect, and capacity to separate blood components. MH showed significant higher platelet concentration than BSH (p<0.05), while the other breed comparisons showed no significant difference. There was no significant difference for gender but there was a weak correlation of age with PRP platelet concentrations (rs = -0.24). Most of the PRP presented yellow color, the separation of blood components showed no correlation, but the aspect showed a moderate correlation (rs = 0.30) with platelet count. Results suggest that PRP platelet concentration can be influenced by intrinsic factors such as breed. Additionally, the analysis of PRP aspect can help to evaluate the quality of the product when there is no access to platelet counts.