Esophagotomy in the pony: comparison of surgical techniques and form of feed.

This research studied the healing of the esophagus in ponies after surgery, noting that the form of food they consumed, rather than the surgical method, played a key role in recovery. The study found ponies fed on a soft diet healed better than those fed on hay and grain.

Methods

• The study was carried out on 12 ponies. All of them were made to undergo cervical esophagotomy, in which the esophagus was sutured, after which they were not fed or given water for a 48-hour period.
• The ponies were divided into two groups of six for the purpose of comparing two surgical techniques. Group I had a longitudinal esophagotomy, whereas group II underwent a rotational esophagotomy, where the incision in the esophagus muscle was made 180 degrees away from the mucosal incision.
• Post-surgery, three ponies from each group were fed a soft diet for nine days, after which they were allowed to have hay and grain. The remaining ponies were only fed hay and grain.

Results

• The study observed that the esophagotomies of the ponies which only consumed hay and grains separated and healed by second intention, or in a process where the wound edges do not join directly.
• On the other hand, the ponies fed a soft diet healed by first intention, meaning their wounds healed directly, without granulation or scarring.
• Additional evaluations using endoscopic and radiographic examinations revealed that the healing progress was associated with the form of the diet rather than the surgical techniques used for the esophagotomy.
• The muscular width at the incision site was found to be 39.6% greater in ponies that were fed a soft diet compared to those fed hay.

Conclusion

• The study concluded that the form of feed had a significant impact on the healing process post-esophagotomy. The behavior of elastin and reticulin fiber, two important connective tissue proteins, did not show any influence based on the type of feed or the surgical technique, although no elastin fiber regeneration was detected at the incision site.
• This has important implications for post-operative care and dietary recommendations for ponies undergoing esophagotomy, highlighting the importance of a soft diet for faster and better wound healing.