Use of thermography in the long‐term evaluation of scrotal surface temperature and its impact on seminal quality in stallions

Scrotal surface thermography is a non‐invasive method for assessing testicular thermoregulation in stallions; however, few studies have explored the application of this technique concerning the thermal physiology of equine reproductive systems. This study aimed to evaluate the consistency of testicu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Reproduction in domestic animals 2024-04, Vol.59 (4), p.e14556-n/a
Main Authors: Freitas, M. L., Viana, J. H. M., Dode, M. A. N., Braga, T. R. C., Oliveira, R. A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abdomen
Ambient temperature
Body temperature
Evaluation
freeze-thaw cycles
horses
Image quality
infrared
neck
reproduction
Reproductive system
scrotum
Sea surface temperature
Semen
semen quality
surface temperature
Testes
testicles
thermal image
Thermography
Thermoregulation
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Summary:Scrotal surface thermography is a non‐invasive method for assessing testicular thermoregulation in stallions; however, few studies have explored the application of this technique concerning the thermal physiology of equine reproductive systems. This study aimed to evaluate the consistency of testicular thermoregulation in stallions over a year using thermography to measure the scrotal surface temperature (SST). Moreover, we assessed the best region for measuring the surface body temperature compared with the SST. Ten light‐breed stallions were used in the experiment. Thermographic images of the scrotal and body surfaces (neck and abdomen) were captured. Fresh, cooled and frozen–thawed semen samples were evaluated to verify the impact of thermoregulation on semen quality. Testicular thermoregulation was maintained throughout the year in stallions amidst changes in the external temperature, as evidenced by the weak correlation between the SST and ambient temperature. A lower correlation was observed between the environmental temperature and body surface temperature (BTS) obtained from the abdomen (BTS‐A; R = .4772; p 
ISSN:0936-6768
1439-0531
DOI:10.1111/rda.14556