Consensus study sets framework for yearling sales endoscopy

A new Delphi consensus study in Equine Veterinary Journal says expert equine veterinarians in Australia and New Zealand have agreed on a more standardized way to perform and interpret Thoroughbred yearling sales endoscopy in Australasia. The panel reached consensus after three survey rounds, backing use of the Havemeyer grading system for yearling laryngeal function, standardized pre-sale endoscopic technique, and a four-tier risk framework: low risk for grades I and II.1, low-moderate for II.2, moderate for III.1, and high risk for III.2 and above. The work builds on earlier stakeholder research that found industry concern about inconsistent grading, especially around “grade 3” horses, and on follow-up research linking finer-grained Havemeyer scores with later performance and laryngoplasty risk. (madbarn.com)

Why it matters: For veterinarians working yearling sales, the paper gives a clearer, evidence-based structure for both scope technique and client communication. Standardization could reduce interobserver variability, improve transparency for buyers and consignors, and align endoscopy reporting more closely with actual downstream risk, rather than relying on older, broader categories that left too much ambiguity in the middle grades. That matters not just commercially, but clinically, because poor laryngeal function at sale has been associated with later airway surgery risk, and the study’s authors explicitly frame consistency as an animal welfare issue as well. (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)

What to watch: Watch for broader 2026 rollout of risk-based reporting at Australasian sales, as researchers and sales companies move from grade labels toward simpler risk communication for veterinarians, buyers, and breeders. (agrifutures.com.au)