Abdominal auscultation in the detection of experimentally induced gastrointestinal sand accumulation.
Abstract: A blind study was designed to determine if abdominal auscultation is an effective method for detecting the presence of intestinal sand. Fifteen horses divided into two groups were used in the study. There were seven horses in Group 1 and eight horses in Group 2. All horses were auscultated and determined to be free of sand sounds before initiation of Trial 1. Group 1 horses were given 4.2 g/kg body weight of sand via nasogastric tube using carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) as a suspending agent at 9.0 ml/kg body weight. Group 2 horses were given CMC only. Horses remained in the same group through all trials. A total of five trails, each lasting 24 hours, was performed. Dosing with sand and CMC or CMC alone was repeated at the beginning of each trial. Abdominal auscultation was performed on each of the 15 horses beginning on Trial 2 by an investigator with no knowledge of the grouping of the horses. The ventral abdomen was auscultated for 5 minutes at 7 hours and 17 hours after trial initiation. When a horse was considered positive for intestinal sand by auscultation, the horse was eliminated from future trials. On Trial 2, no horses were positive; on Trial 3, one horse; on Trial 4, two horses, and on Trial 5, four horses. Sounds considered characteristic for sand in the intestinal tract were eventually identified in all Group 1 horses. No horses in Group 2 were ever identified as having sounds characteristic for intestinal sand at any point during this investigation.
Publication Date: 1989-01-01 PubMed ID: 2538618DOI: 10.1111/j.1939-1676.1989.tb00322.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Abdominal
- Clinical Examination
- Clinical Findings
- Clinical Pathology
- Clinical Study
- Diagnosis
- Diagnostic Technique
- Disease
- Disease Diagnosis
- Equine Health
- Equine Research
- Experimental Methods
- Gastrointestinal Diseases
- Gastrointestinal Health
- Horses
- Infection
- Sand Impaction
- Veterinary Care
- Veterinary Medicine
- Veterinary Practice
- Veterinary Research
Summary
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This research aimed to determine if abdominal auscultation can accurately detect the presence of sand in a horse’s intestine. The results indicated that this detection method was successful in identifying those horses specifically treated with sand, and none of the control horses were falsely identified.
Objective and Methods
- The objective of this research was to determine the effectiveness of abdominal auscultation in detecting sand accumulation and movement in a horse’s gastrointestinal tract.
- A blind study involving 15 horses was conducted. The researchers separated the horses into two groups: Group 1, consisting of seven horses, and Group 2, comprising eight horses.
- Before the trials began, all horses were auscultated to confirm there were no sand sounds in their abdomens.
Experiment Process
- In Group 1, the horses were given 4.2 g/kg body weight of sand via a nasogastric tube. The sand was suspended using carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) at 9.0 ml/kg body weight. The horses in Group 2 were given only CMC, serving as control group.
- The experiment consisted of five trials, each persisting 24 hours, during which dosing with sand and CMC, or CMC only, was repeated at the beginning of each trial.
- From Trial 2 onwards, abdominal auscultation was performed on all horses by a blind tester, who did not know which group the horses belonged to.
- Any horse found to have sand in its intestine by auscultation was excluded from the following trials.
Results
- The abscence of sand in the intestines was noted in all horses on Trial 2. On Trial 3, the first case of sand accumulation was found in Group 1. As the trials progressed, the number of horses detected with sand increased in Group 1.
- By Trial 5, all horses in Group 1 were identified to have sand in their intestines.
- Throughout the investigation, no horse in Group 2, the control group, was ever found to have sounds characteristic of intestinal sand, making it clear that the method was effective and not providing any false positives.
Conclusions
- The study showed that abdominal auscultation can be used effectively to detect the presence of sand in a horse’s intestines.
- Despite the progression in trials and the repeated dosing of manipulate factors, the method was accurate in identifying those specifically treated horses, and the control group was correctly identified throughout the experiment.
- The fact that the control group was accurately identified as not having intestinal sand indicates the reliability and specificity of abdominal auscultation as a detection measure for this condition in horses.
Cite This Article
APA
Ragle CA, Meagher DM, Schrader JL, Honnas CM.
(1989).
Abdominal auscultation in the detection of experimentally induced gastrointestinal sand accumulation.
J Vet Intern Med, 3(1), 12-14.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-1676.1989.tb00322.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital Davis, California.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Auscultation / veterinary
- Colic / diagnosis
- Colic / veterinary
- Female
- Gastrointestinal Diseases / diagnosis
- Gastrointestinal Diseases / veterinary
- Horse Diseases / diagnosis
- Horses
- Male
- Random Allocation
- Silicon Dioxide
Citations
This article has been cited 3 times.- Kaikkonen R, Niinistö K, Lindholm T, Raekallio M. Comparison of psyllium feeding at home and nasogastric intubation of psyllium and magnesium sulfate in the hospital as a treatment for naturally occurring colonic sand (geosediment) accumulations in horses: a retrospective study. Acta Vet Scand 2016 Oct 12;58(1):73.
- Kendall A, Ley C, Egenvall A, Bröjer J. Radiographic parameters for diagnosing sand colic in horses. Acta Vet Scand 2008 Jun 13;50(1):17.
- Entwisle IG, Byrne DP, Lester GD, McConnell EJ. Radiographic area of large intestinal sand accumulation in horses may determine clinical significance. Aust Vet J 2025 Dec;103(12):890-893.
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