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Home / Equine Research Bank / Vet World / Occurrence, treatment protocols, and outcomes of colic in ho...
Veterinary world2017; 10(10); 1255-1263; doi: 10.14202/vetworld.2017.1255-1263

Occurrence, treatment protocols, and outcomes of colic in horses within Nairobi County, Kenya.

Abstract: The aim of this study was to determine the treatments and their outcomes in horses with colic in Nairobi County, Kenya. Methods: This is a retrospective study to determine the occurrence, treatments, pain management, and outcomes of colic in horses in Nairobi County. Association between pain management protocols and the outcomes of colic with regard to recovery or death was also determined. Data collected from four equine practitioners were organized manually and given numerical codes as appropriate to facilitate entry into the computer. The coded data were entered into Microsoft Excel 2010 and exported to StatPlus pro 5.9.8 statistical package for analysis. Simple association tests were done between various factors and occurrence of colic. Results: The incidence of colic for the 11 years was 3.1%, which constituted 68.0% spasmodic colic, 27.8% impaction colic, and 4.2% displacement colic. Flunixin meglumine as a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) was used as the only pain management treatment in 85.3% of the cases, flunixin meglumine and butorphanol as NSAID-OPIOD combination in 6.4% of the cases, while buscopan as an antispasmodic was recorded in 5.9% of the cases mainly in spasmodic colic. Univariate analysis revealed simple association between various factors and the type of colic a horse was having. There was an association between the type of colic and the decision-making on the pain management protocol to use, whether single analgesic protocol (χ2=22.5, p<0.001) or use of analgesic combinations (χ2=18.3, p<0.001). The type of colic strongly influenced the decision for performing nasogastric intubation (χ2=265, p<0.001), but performing nasogastric intubation was weakly (χ2=4.9, p=0.03) associated with horse recovery from colic. Type of colic also strongly influenced the need for the use of metabolic stimulants, particularly vitamin B-complex (χ2=99.3, p<0.001). Recovery or death of the horse from colic was strongly associated with the type of colic (χ2=250, p<0.001). The possibility of recurrence of colic was weakly (χ2=4.6, p=0.04) determined by the type of colic, a horse had. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that the main cause of death was intestinal displacement and the majority of the horses with intestinal displacement died (β-estimate 2.7, odds ratio=0.07, p=0.007) compared to horses that had impaction colic. Conclusions: The incidence of colic is 3.1%, and the most common type of colic is spasmodic followed by impaction. The most common pain management protocol for colic is NSAIDs, mainly flunixin meglumine, followed by flunixin-butorphanol combination. Surgery for horses with colic in Nairobi County is not commonly done due to impeding poor prognoses. The horse owners tend to prefer euthanasia for such cases.
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Publication Date: 2017-10-22 PubMed ID: 29184373PubMed Central: PMC5682272DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2017.1255-1263Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

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This research article investigated the occurrence, treatment methodologies and their outcomes in horses suffering from colic in Nairobi County, Kenya. The article concluded that the incidence of colic is 3.1%, with spasmodic colic being the most common type. The preferred pain management treatment was nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), particularly flunixin meglumine.

Research Methodology

  • This paper presents a retrospective study conducted in Nairobi County with the aim to understand the occurrence, treatments, pain management, and outcomes of colic in horses.
  • Four equine practitioners collected the data which were then organized manually and encoded numerically for computer entry and analysis.
  • This coded data was then analysed using the StatPlus pro 5.9.8 statistical package, after being entered into Microsoft Excel 2010.

Results

  • Over an 11 year period, the incidence of colic was found to be 3.1%. The majority of these were spasmodic colic at 68%, followed by impaction colic at 27.8% and displacement colic at 4.2%.
  • The primary method of pain management was noted to be Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug (NSAID) namely flunixin meglumine, applied in 85.3% of the cases. A combination of flunixin meglumine and butorphanol was used in 6.4% cases. The drug buscopan, which is an antispasmodic, was applied in 5.9% of the cases that predominantly dealt with spasmodic colic.
  • The team of researchers also discovered an association between the type of colic and the decision regarding the pain management protocol to be used. This was either a single analgesic protocol or use of analgesic combinations.

Conclusions

  • Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs), particularly flunixin meglumine, were the most common pain management treatments for colic in horses.
  • It was also found that horse survival rates were weakly associated with the performance of nasogastric intubation, a process often used in colic treatment.
  • According to the research, the type of colic was strongly associated with the use of metabolic stimulants, particularly vitamin B-complex, and the outcome (which could be recovery or death) of the horse suffering from colic.
  • The article additionally reveals that intestinal displacement was generally the main cause of death in horses which had colic. In majority of the cases, horses with intestinal displacement succumbed to the condition.

Cite This Article

APA
Gitari A, Nguhiu J, Varma V, Mogoa E. (2017). Occurrence, treatment protocols, and outcomes of colic in horses within Nairobi County, Kenya. Vet World, 10(10), 1255-1263. https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2017.1255-1263

Publication

Veterinary world
ISSN: 0972-8988
NlmUniqueID: 101504872
Country: India
Language: English
Volume: 10
Issue: 10
Pages: 1255-1263

Researcher Affiliations

Gitari, Anderson
  • Department of Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya.
Nguhiu, James
  • Department of Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya.
Varma, Vijay
  • Department of Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya.
Mogoa, Eddy
  • Department of Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya.

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Citations

This article has been cited 2 times.
  1. Fikri F, Hendrawan D, Wicaksono AP, Purnomo A, Khairani S, Chhetri S, Purnama MTE, Çalışkan H. Colic incidence, risk factors, and therapeutic management in a working horse population in Tuban, Indonesia. Vet World 2024 May;17(5):963-972.
    doi: 10.14202/vetworld.2024.963-972pubmed: 38911082google scholar: lookup
  2. Fikri F, Hendrawan D, Wicaksono AP, Purnomo A, Khairani S, Chhetri S, Maslamama ST, Purnama MTE. Incidence, risk factors, and therapeutic management of equine colic in Lamongan, Indonesia. Vet World 2023;16(7):1408-1414.
    doi: 10.14202/vetworld.2023.1408-1414pubmed: 37621536google scholar: lookup
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