The Ozone is a natural gas present in various layers of the atmosphere, to which many important effects are attributed, both physical-chemical nature and biochemistry. First of all the absorption power of the u.v. solar rays which makes this an atmospheric component of fundamental benefit for the organic life on the earth. To the biochemical level the ozone acting will develop directly on the coenzymes and on the organic substance, expressing then on the three fundamental lines of the metabolism: lipids, carbohydrate and proteins.
These different interactions of the ozone with the metabolism are able to cause different reactions to the hematic level, with various effects whether on the corpuscular side or on the plasma.
Particularly important is the action on the erythrocytes , on which the ozone gives rise to the oxidisation process (peroxydation) with an increase of the negative charge of the erythrocyte membrane.
Moreover the shortening of the lipid chains, always to this level, gives rise as result to a phenomenon of "relaxation" of the molecular structure of the membrane. This relaxation, added to the increase of the negative charge, has a considerable influence on the haematic viscosity.
The ozone as well as on the membrane, operate on the intra-cell metabolism of the erythrocytes, in particular accelerating the glycolysis due to the coenzyme NADH oxidisation . This involves a better production of 1.3 wax difostogli and consequently an increase of the 2.3. diphosphoglycerate.
The action of this substance is extremely interesting for the ozone therapeutic effects : it increase the transfer of oxygen to the tissues from Hb (Rokitansky, 1981).
This important effect, tested with arterials and venous hemo-gas-analysis , is very meaningful and brings out that the responsible of the beneficent effects is not the best oxygenation of the arterial blood obtainable with the ozonization, but the increasing of the oxygen transfer to the tissues from the red corpuscles, due to the different modifications remembered.
This increase of the oxygenation to the tissues, of fundamental importance for the treatment of ischemic vascular disease, is only obtainable with the ozone. No medicine is able to furnish similar results, is today to our disposal.
As known, the deformability, the tendence to stack and the number of red corpuscles influences the blood flow in a conclusive way. This, above all, in the small vessels where the speed of flowing is low. In the cases of obstructive vascular pathology, of atherosclerotic or thrombotic nature, the speed of the flow further decreases, particularly if the haematic viscosity is high. The biochemical effects of the ozone on the blood makes comprehensible the reason why the angiology is today considered one of best fields for the ozone application, in fact in the human medicine is more and more spreading the use of oxygen-ozonotherapy for the treatment of the circle pathologies, both venous and arterial. Confident of these experiences (Rokitansky, 1977.1981; Mattassi 1980.01985 and others), they also decided to use the ozonotherapy in the veterinary branch for the similar pathologies of the horse , as for example the navicular osteitis - patogenetically classified as an thrombo-ischemic artheriopaty - and the thrombotic endarteritis of the external iliac arteries.

Our survey include 10 athletic horses (9 saddle-horses and 1 trot-horse) which 8 suffering from navicular osteitis and 2 afflicted with thrombotic endarteritis due to Strongili larvas to the East a. Iliac.
The age is variable from 6 to 12 years, with an average of 8.2 = 2.2: as concern the sex, are present 5 females, 2 males, and 3 gelded. The breeds are variously represented.
As treatment plan are followed the instructions acquired from human medicine. The ozonized auto hemoterapy was effected at an interval of two-three days each other, to a total of 10-12 operations and changing the concentration of ozone in order to test the reaction of the patients.
The utilised methods is made of the big ozonized hyperbaric auto hemoterapy according to Kieff opinion. This technique consists to withdraw each time ml. 250 of venous blood sample, ozonize it with a mixture oxygen +ozone of variable concentration from 26 to 50 microg/ml and to immediately inject it again.
In our case, each auto hemoterapy cycle was repeated four times to get the ozonization of ml 1000 of blood. For each subject submitted to infusions of oxygen +ozone to variable concentration of g 26-50/ml, the resulted total quantity of ozone was ml 8000-12800 of gas.
For the treatment was used an electronic computerized apparatus, which allows to effect all the passages (blood withdrawal, ozonization, and blood reinstatement) to closed circuit and to controlled depression/pression.

Following the right therapeutic scheme, the results obtained with the big auto ozonised hemoterapy could be considered, in their complex, highly positive.
In fact in the group of the horses suffering from navicular osteitis, 7 subjects on 8 recovered a full athletic activity, recovery persistent to the checkup after a year.
The only horse of this group who has not totally reacted to the treatment, had a remission of the sympthomathologycal picture of 70%.
The 2 Horses afflicted with endarteritis and iliacs thrombosis due to Strongili larvas are also perfectly recovered.
Obviously, the auto ozonized hemoterapy was associated to a suitable anthelmintic treatment (Ivermectina).
Amongst the side effects, is to be reported that an hypoglicemic fit has been revealed a in a subject 10 minutes after the auto hemoterapy. This acute hypoglicemic state, due to the deep glicotic action of the ozone, was immediately placed under control and passed without any problem.
At the end of this first series of surveys, that represents only a preliminary phase of the approach towards one of the therapeutic applications of the ozone, certainly we are not able to draw the definitive conclusions, given that the survey is insufficient. Despite that, these first data furnish a very meaningful orientation and encourage us to continue the research, also with the possibility of widen the ozone utilization in other fields of different therapeutic applications.