Veterinary procedures in horses encompass a range of medical and surgical interventions performed to diagnose, treat, and manage equine health conditions. These procedures are designed to address various health issues, from routine care to emergency interventions. Common veterinary procedures include vaccinations, dental care, lameness evaluations, reproductive services, and surgical interventions such as colic surgery or fracture repair. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the methodologies, outcomes, and advancements in veterinary procedures for horses, providing insights into their application and efficacy in equine medicine.
Manley SV.The objectives of monitoring are to gain much information as possible about the anesthetized horse and to follow changes in that information, with the ultimate aim of making anesthesia and surgery as safe as possible for the horse. Information necessary to achieve that aim will vary depending on patient category. For example, a young, healthy horse undergoing a short elective procedure can be clinically well monitored by patient signs, electrocardiogram, and indirect blood pressure response. More invasive monitoring is justified and warranted if the health status of the horse is in question. T...
Stick JA, Derksen FJ, Scott EA.Cervical esophagostomy for tube feeding was evaluated in 11 ponies. Minor complications responded to supportive therapy in 8 ponies. Two died of complications, and 1 pony had a permanent fistula because of persistent infection. There was a positive correlation between the duration of tube feeding and the event of closure of the esophageal stoma after the tube was removed. There was no difference in the frequency of complications related to duration of tube feeding. When the distal end of the feeding tube was located in the thoracic portion of the esophagus, instead of in the stomach, tubes wer...
Carakostas MC, Moore WE, Smith JE.A procedure with chromium-51 (51Cr) as the cell label that maintains high-cell viability for studying granulocyte kinetics in horses is described. The procedure combines and modifies several methods for isolating leukocytes and granulocytes for use in the horse when a large volume of labeled cells is required. Also described is an improved technique for measuring granulocyte specific activity in large serial blood samples, using a Ficoll-sedimentation method. The procedure should be useful for determining granulocyte kinetics in the horse, the only major domestic species for which such data ar...
Holmberg DL.Four horses with corneal perforations of various etiologies were presented for surgical correction. Pedicle grafts taken from the bulbar or palpebral conjunctiva were used to repair the defects. Two horses regained functional vision in the affected eyes while a third had significant impairment. The fourth eye, which had an intense uveitis pre and postoperative, became phthisic and blind.
Tranquilli WJ, Manohar M, Thurmon JC, Manning JP.Long-term catheterisation of the coronary sinus using a specially designed catheter was accomplished in 6 ponies via a right lateral thoracotomy. The catheter comprised a 10 to 12 cm long stiff segment (Teflon) joined to a 100 cm length of pliable medical grade (vinyl) tubing. Catheters were kept functional up to 10 weeks postoperatively. Location of the catheter tip was verified by determining the oxygen tension of anaerobically withdrawn blood samples. Normal values of oxygen tension of the coronary sinus blood in ponies were similar to those reported for the dog, whereas oxygen content was ...
Simpson CF, Buergelt CD.The alveoli of the lungs of 2 aborted foals contained elongated, dense bodies when examined histologically and by transmission and scanning electron microscopy. By light microscopy, the bodies (10 to 40 micrometers in size) stained intensely with the Gram stain, and up to 10 were present within an alveolus. Electron microscopy determined that such bodies were not cellular in origin but appeared to be a congealed fluid product composed of layers of fibrillar-like material. From the human literature, it was concluded that these intraalveolar bodies were probably congealed amniotic fluid.
Allen BV.A technique for automating equine differential leucocyte counts by analysis of volume distribution curves using the Coulter Channelyzer has been developed and evaluated. A comparison between the results obtained by this method and standard microscopic techniques showed good agreement in most cases. Blood samples can be analysed for both differential and total leucocyte counts at a rate of 25/h. For each sample an average 16,000 leucocytes are classified by the Channelyzer. The method of volume analysis is suitable for the precise counting of polymorphonuclear neutrophils, lymphocytes and eosin...
Derksen FJ, Robinson NE, Stick JA.A surgical technique is described for preparation of chronic cervical vagal loops in ponies. Vagal blockade was induced by circulating methanol (-2 C) through coils which enclosed the loops. Vagal blockade increased tidal volume, heart rate, and systemic blood pressure and decreased respiratory rate. Atropine, given at a dose of 0.04 mg/kg IV, increased heart rate and systemic pressure but did not alter respiratory variables, indicating that vagal cooling caused both afferent and efferent blockade. The effects of vagal blockade were rapidly reversed when refrigerated coils were removed.
Irwin DH, Howell DW.An easy diagnostic technique for recognising fibrotic myopathy and scarring in the caudal popliteal area is described. A simplified corrective surgical technique is offered and discussed briefly. Some aspects of haematomas are reviewed.
Milde AK.The objective of this study was to establish whether the carpal joints in horses are subject to development of arthrosis to a larger extent than previously assumed. Furthermore, an attempt has been made to clarify whether clinical diagnostical resources presently available are sufficient for accurate evaluation of the status in carpus. The present results show that an analysis of the synovia fluid is of little value in case of chronica arthrosis in carpus. Histilogical examination of the synovia membrane has been of limited value in this cases as it has not been possible to arrive at a definit...
Speirs VC, van Veenendaal JC, Christie BA, Lavelle RB, Gay CC.Three cases of intramural haematoma of the small colon of horses are presented. In all cases the haematoma obstructed the lumen and caused an accumulation of faeces and gas. The horses were in shock and had acute abdominal pain. Exploratory abdominal surgery revealed the haematomas and showed them to be associated with chronic infection and terminal rupture in one animal which was subsequently killed, and an iatrogenic perforation of the terminal small colon in another which survived after intestinal resection. In the remaining horse, which died without recovering after intestinal resection, n...
Easley KJ, Schneider JE.In 9 horses, osteotomies were performed to simulate accessory carpal bone fractures. Screw fixation, aided by a large C-clamp, was performed on 6 of the 9 horses. Three were treated conservatively, as controls, with fractures not repaired; they remained clinically lame throughout the 6-month study. Fibrocartilaginous nonunion developed in each of the 3 controls. At 150 days, the principals were free of lameness, with evidence of bony union. The results of clinical, radiographic, and pathologic evaluations showed surgical repair to be superior to prolonged rest in treating equine accessory carp...
Tate LP, Koch DB, Sembrat RF, Boles CL.A surgical technique for resection of a portion of the trachea followed by end-to-end anastomosis was developed on 4 clinically normal horses. The trachea healed without complications in 3 of the horses in which 3 tracheal cartilages were removed. Five tracheal cartilages were removed from the 4th horse. It had to be euthanatized because of excessive suture line tension and wound disruption, which occurred during recovery from anesthesia. Suture line tension was measured on 3 other clinically normal horses positioned in dorsal recumbency immediately after euthanasia after 3 and 5 tracheal cart...
Marshall AE, Byars TD, Whitlock RH, George LW.Brainstem auditory evoked response (BAER) testing was done to evaluate inner ear/VIIIth cranial nerve (CN8) function in the horse. The BAER test consisted of stimulating the auditory system with clicks and recording far-field responses of the brainstem auditory components via cutaneous electrodes and a signal averaging system. The normal response was shown to be a series of waves occurring within the first 10 msec after the stimulus click. Functional loss of the auditory receptor organ (cochlea) or CN8 results in loss of the entire response on the side of the injury. Because of the anatomic re...
Shappell KK, Caron JP, Stick JA, Parks AJ.Dorsal displacement of the soft palate associated with dysphagia and aspiration pneumonia was diagnosed in 2 young foals. The displacement appeared to be congenital. Clinical signs associated with the condition were resolved after staphylectomy. Dorsal displacement of the soft palate is usually recognized in adult animals as an upper respiratory tract disease, but may be a contributing factor to dysphagia and lower respiratory tract disease in young animals.
Wiemer P.In 22 stallions the surgically prepared spermatic cord was crushed and ligated. Preoperative and postoperative plasma-testosterone concentrations were measured and 60 days after surgery a HCG-stimulation test was carried out in 12 horses. In these 12 horses the testosterone production had ceased. In all 22 horses the wounds healed by primary intention. Ligation of the spermatic cord is a castration technique without surgical complications, at least in this study.