Topic:Case Reports
Case reports in equine medicine provide detailed accounts of individual horses' clinical presentations, diagnostic processes, treatments, and outcomes. These reports are valuable for documenting rare conditions, novel treatment approaches, or unique clinical insights that may not be captured in larger studies. By focusing on individual cases, these reports contribute to the broader understanding of equine health and disease management. They often include comprehensive information on the horse's history, clinical findings, diagnostic tests, therapeutic interventions, and follow-up evaluations. This page assembles peer-reviewed case reports and scholarly articles that explore diverse aspects of equine health, offering insights into specific medical scenarios and their implications for veterinary practice.
Congenital scoliosis in a quarter horse filly. A 4-week old Quarter Horse filly was evaluated for abnormal gait and lateral deviation of the cervical spine. Physical examination findings prompted radiographs and computed tomography of the thoracic vertebral column which revealed hypoplasia of several thoracic vertebral bodies and resultant scoliosis of the thoracic vertebral column and deviation of the left and right hemithoraces and associated ribs. Collectively, radiography and computed tomography provided an accurate description of the vertebral malformations resulting in scoliosis in this foal.
Retrospective evaluation of episodic collapse in the horse in a referred population: 25 cases (1995-2009). Episodic collapse in horses has equine welfare and human safety implications. There are, however, no published case series describing this syndrome. Objective: To characterize the cause and outcomes for horses referred for investigation of episodic collapse. Methods: Twenty-five horses referred for investigation of single or multiple episodes of collapse. Methods: Retrospective study. Clinical records from the Dick Vet Equine Hospital, University of Edinburgh from November 1995 to July 2009 were searched using the following keywords: collapse, collapsing, fall, syncope. Collapse was defined as...
Balantidium coli-infection in a Finnish horse. Balantidium coli is a ciliated protozoan that inhabits the large intestine of swine, man, rodents, and nonhuman primates. Frequently this organism is associated with enteric diseases in man and nonhuman primates, with rare manifestations of disease in swine and other mammalian species. This report describes a case of B. coli-induced enteric disease in a 15-yr-old, mare, Finnish Horse after an acute onset of colic. Severe hemorrhagic and eosinophilic colitis with intense infiltration of intralesional B. coli-like ciliated protozoan were found histologically.
Single stage urethroplasty for perineal hypospadias in a horse: A case report. Within the veterinary world, data regarding the surgical management of hypospadias is lacking. Reports within equines have documented resective phallectomy procedures rather than urethral reconstruction. This case report documents the first ever urethroplasty for an equine hypospadias, performed by a consultant paediatric surgeon. The urethroplasty was achieved by applying the same surgical principles mastered from paediatric urology to a horse. The indication for surgery was contact dermatitis of the hind-leg, which impaired the thoroughbred foal's racing potential. Methods: A single stage ur...
T-shaped malformation of the ventral colon in a Thoroughbred filly with colic. A 4-month-old Thoroughbred filly presented for abdominal pain was diagnosed with a T-shaped malformation of the ventral colon at exploratory laparotomy. Following resection and anastomosis of the large colon, no further episodes of abdominal pain occurred during a 12-month follow-up. Acute dehiscence of the linea alba occurred as a complication of the initial laparotomy, but was successfully managed following additional surgical repair. T-shaped malformation of the ventral colon has not previously been reported and is considered a congenital malformation of mesocolon formation.
[A gastrointestinal stromal tumour of the caecum in a pony with colic]. A 25-year-old pony mare was presented to the clinic with preliminarily reported severe acute colic. The pony during the previous week had shown inappetence, apathy and fever of unknown origin. Clinical examination and placement of a gastric tube were indicative of a secondary gastric dilation. Rectal exploration found moderate caecal meteorism with a tensed and painful medial taenia as well as a dilated and fluid-filled small intestine. In addition, a solid, mobile, non-painful structure of approximately 10 cm diameter was palpated ventrally. A hyperechogenic mass close to the caecum was detec...
Successful engraftment of cultured autologous mesenchymal stem cells in a surgically repaired soft palate defect in an adult horse. The objective of this study was to graft autologous mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) at the site of surgical repair of a soft palate defect in an adult horse in an attempt to improve wound healing and to investigate whether the transplanted MSCs would integrate into the soft palate structure and participate in regeneration. Bone marrow was collected from an adult horse with a full-thickness soft palate defect. The MSCs were isolated, cultured in monolayers, and labeled with 5-bromo-2-desoxymidine (BrdU) and chloromethylbenzamido-DiI-derived (cm-DiI) before transplantation. The soft palate defect ...
Epidemiological and genetic study of exertional rhabdomyolysis in a Warmblood horse family in Switzerland. Exertional rhabdomyolysis (ER) and its familial basis in Warmblood horses is incompletely understood. Objective: To describe the case details, clinical signs and management of ER-affected Warmblood horses from a family with a high prevalence of ER, to determine if histopathological signs of polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM) and the glycogen synthase (GYS1) mutation are associated with ER in this family, and to investigate potential risk factors for development of ER. Methods: A family consisting of a sire with ER and 71 of his descendants was investigated. History of episodes of ER, husba...
Causes of horse-related injuries in a rural western community. To determine the causes of horse-related injuries in a rural western community. Methods: Prospective identification of persons with horse-related injuries and retrospective interviews with patients or witnesses to determine causes. Methods: A small rural community in Alberta where the western style of riding predominates. Methods: All patients presenting to two family medicine clinics or to the Sundre General Hospital emergency department. Methods: Factors contributing to the injury as recalled by patients or witnesses, and characteristics of the persons, horses, and injuries. Results: Two thi...
Risk factors for Clostridium piliforme infection in foals. To determine risk factors for Clostridium piliforme infection in neonatal foals on a Thoroughbred breeding farm in California. Methods: Case-control and retrospective cohort studies. Methods: 322 neonatal Thoroughbred foals either born on the study farm or born elsewhere but traveled to the farm with their dam during the 1998, 1999, and 2000 breeding seasons. Methods: Mare and foal records from 1998, 1999, and 2000 were examined, using case-control design methods to determine variables associated with increased risk of C. piliforme infection in foals. Important risk factors identified in the c...
Injury to the origin of the gastrocnemius muscle as a possible cause of lameness in four horses. Four horses were evaluated because of hind limb lameness. Two had a distinct gait abnormality at the walk characterized by lateral rotation of the point of the calcaneus and medial rotation of the toe during the stance phase. Nuclear scintigraphy revealed a focal area of intense radioisotope uptake in the caudodistal aspect of the femur in all 4 horses, and 3 of the horses had a corresponding proliferative reaction on the caudodistal cortex of the femur on radiographs. In all 4 horses, a diagnosis of injury to the origin of the gastrocnemius muscle was made. Three of the horses returned to ath...
A case of equine cryptorchidism with undetectable serum anti-Müllerian hormone. Serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), a marker of equine cryptorchidism, is detectable in intact and cryptorchid stallions but not in geldings because it is secreted from Sertoli cells. A 4-year-old uncastrated Thoroughbred racehorse had no visible testes; therefore, the horse was considered a bilateral cryptorchidism. However, the serum AMH was undetectable (<0.08 ng/ml). Human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) stimulating test result indicated that the horse was a gelding. The results of sex chromosomal analysis and sequence analysis of SRY gene suggested that the horse was a genetically-intac...
[Priapism in the stallion]. A review of the literature is given concerning the anatomy and pathophysiology of the equine penis with regard to priapism: a prolonged erection of the penis not associated with sexual arousal. Several treatment options, such as flushing of the corpus cavernosum penis with heparinized saline and the creation of shunt between the corpus cavernosum penis and the corpus spongiosum penis are discussed. Subsequently, a case of priapism in a stallion following the injection of acepromazine, is discussed. The priapism resolved after the corpus cavernosum penis was flushed with the stallion under gene...