Laryngeal chondritis is a disease of undetermined aetiology, characterised by oedema, ulceration, abscessation and necrosis of the laryngeal mucosa and cartilage. The initial aim of the study was to document flock health issues identified by Irish pedigree Texel breeders using a questionnaire survey. Additionally, given the reports of breed predisposition for laryngeal chondritis in Texels, a further aim was to identify if laryngeal problems were perceived as an issue. Work was then conducted to identify if pre-clinical laryngeal mucosal pathology was identifiable in Texel sheep showing no overt clinical signs of respiratory disease and if associations existed between laryngeal measurements and laryngeal pathology. Thirty one larynges were collected from a Texel flock that previously had laryngeal chondritis diagnosed in fallen stock. Gross visual inspection was performed to identify and grade (0–5) laryngeal pathology. A series of measurements were then performed on larynges that had been formalin fixed. Associations between independent variables (larynx measurements) and the dependent variable (laryngeal pathology score) were examined. Respiratory disease was the most frequently identified health issue. Farmer-diagnosed ‘throat problems’ were reported by over 80% of respondents. Laryngeal pathology was noted in Texels showing no overt clinical signs of respiratory disease. Associations between laryngeal measurements and laryngeal pathology were identified relating to the angle between the cranial point of the cricoid cartilage and the vocal process of the arytenoid cartilage. Mild laryngeal pathology was noted in animals with no overt clinical signs of respiratory disease. Future research should examine whether significant associations between laryngeal measurements and laryngeal pathology identified in the current study can be measured ante mortem, and whether such ante mortem measurements will allow early identification of sheep at risk of developing laryngeal chondritis.

中文翻译：

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爱尔兰特塞尔学会饲养员的群体健康调查和特塞尔绵羊的喉部检查。

喉软骨炎是一种病因不明的疾病，以喉部黏膜和软骨的水肿、溃疡、脓肿和坏死为特征。该研究的最初目的是使用问卷调查记录爱尔兰纯种 Texel 饲养员发现的鸡群健康问题。此外，鉴于 Texels 中有关品种易患喉软骨炎的报告，进一步的目的是确定喉部问题是否被视为一个问题。然后进行工作以确定在没有明显呼吸道疾病临床症状的特克塞尔绵羊中是否可识别出临床前喉粘膜病理学，以及喉测量和喉病理学之间是否存在关联。31 个喉是从以前在倒下的种群中诊断出喉软骨炎的特克塞尔鸡群中收集的。进行大体目视检查以识别和分级（0-5）喉部病变。然后对福尔马林固定的喉部进行一系列测量。检查了自变量（喉测量）和因变量（喉病理学评分）之间的关联。呼吸系统疾病是最常见的健康问题。超过 80% 的受访者报告了农民诊断出的“喉咙问题”。在 Texels 中发现喉部病变，没有表现出明显的呼吸道疾病临床症状。喉测量和喉病理学之间的关联被确定为与环状软骨的颅点和杓状软骨的发声过程之间的角度有关。在没有明显呼吸道疾病临床症状的动物中发现了轻度喉部病变。