DISCUSSION
Our study demonstrated that fungal elements were commonly present in the
trachea, with a positive TW mycology obtained in 81.9% of samples and
fungal elements present upon cytological examination of TW in 75.5% of
samples. In contrast, fungal detection was scarce in the BALF, with
fungal elements found upon cytological examination in 18.1% of samples
and a positive BALF mycology culture obtained in 23.9% of samples. The
results from this study partially supported our hypothesis that exposure
to fungal elements was a risk factor for asthma, since only horses with
MA had almost 5-fold higher odds of positive mycology in BALF compared
with CTL horses. Furthermore, horses with an increased score of tracheal
mucus were more likely to exhibit positive fungal culture in BALF, as
well as horses with an increased proportion of neutrophils in BALF.