Assessment of sand accumulation in the gastrointestinal tract and its excretion with stool in silesian foals.

This study seeks to evaluate the accumulation of sand in the digestive systems of Silesian foals, as well as the sand excretion rates through their stool. Using diagnostic methods, age, and gender variables, the research found that sand can indeed accumulate in the gastrointestinal tracts of these animals without showing any clinical symptoms.

Research Background and Objective

• The central objective of the research was to explore how sand accumulates in the gastrointestinal system of Silesian foals and how it is excreted through their stool.
• The study also aimed to compare three diagnostic strategies for assessing this issue, including a sedimentation test, abdominal ultrasonography, and a quantitative evaluation of sand in stool samples.

Methodology

• The research comprised 21 clinically healthy Silesian foals, from 9 to 28 weeks of age, who were grazed on permanent pasture.
• The researchers adopted and compared three diagnostic approaches: a sedimentation test for palpable sand in stool samples, an ultrasonography exam to detect sand in the gastrointestinal system, and a quantitative analysis of the amount of sand in 100g of stool.

Key Findings

• The sedimentation test showed that sand was palpable in the stool of 57.1% of the sample horses, and clearly visible in 42.9% of them.
• Horses’ ultrasound exams revealed sand presence in the gastro-intestinal tracts of 66.7% of the animals, confined to one location in 60% of these foals and spread across multiple locations in 40% of them.
• The study found that the mean sand quantity was 0.14 ± 0.33 grams per 100 grams of stool. The increment did not exceed 0.1g in 71.4% of the foals, while it ranged between 0.1-0.5 g in 23.8% of them. However, in 4.8% of the animals, it amounted to a substantial 1.6 g per 100 g of stool.
• Interestingly, the study did not discover a correlation between the foals’ age and gender and the results.
• There was a positive correlation between the results of the ultrasound exams and the sedimentation tests.

Conclusions

• The study concludes that sand can accumulate in foals’ digestive systems without triggering clinical signs.
• It also revealed that the amount of sand excreted in feces is not an accurate marker for the quantity of sand accumulated in the stomach and intestines.
• The researchers recommend combining abdominal ultrasounds with sedimentation tests for more accurate results.