Hypernatraemia in 39 hospitalised foals: clinical findings, primary diagnosis and outcome.

The study assesses hypernatraemia in young foals admitted as medical emergencies to a hospital unit, focusing on the prevalence of the condition, clinical observations, primary diagnoses, and potential outcomes. The research shows this abnormal amount of sodium in their blood is a significant but uncommon issue in this group of foals, correlating negatively with their prognosis.

Methods and Data Collection

• The study was retrospective in nature, reviewing patient records of Thoroughbred foals younger than three months old. These foals were admitted as medical emergencies to an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) between the years 2002 and 2012.
• Data gathered from these records included signalment (individual identifying characteristics), clinical observations, laboratory results, primary diagnoses, and their outcome.
• Foals displaying hypernatraemia, defined as a high concentration of sodium in the bloodstream (measured as above 145 mmol/L), were identified for further evaluation.

Findings and Conclusions

• Among 1718 foals studied, 39 (or 2.3%) were identified with hypernatraemia. All foals with this condition were less than a week old.
• Most common primary diagnoses in foals with hypernatraemia were the neonatal syndrome (found in 48.7% or 19 out of 39 foals) and sepsis (detected in 38.5% or 15 out of 39 foals).
• An interesting observation is that foals with hypernatraemia upon admission were more likely to die or undergo euthanasia during their hospital stay compared to those with a normal sodium concentration upon ICU admission. The study provided an odds ratio of this being 2.3 with a 95% confidence interval of 1.2-4.6. This signifies a negative association between hypernatraemia and the outcome for the foals in the ICU.

Implications

• Hypernatraemia, although relatively uncommon, is a crucial electrolyte anomaly in this population of hospitalized foals.
• While the short-term outcome of survivors most likely depends on the cause underneath, hypernatraemia is negatively associated with the outcome of hospitalised foals. This information could be vital for veterinarians for managing foals with this condition and could also influence the medical intervention plan and decisions for the welfare of the animal.