Radiographic area of large intestinal sand accumulation in horses may determine clinical significance.
Abstract: Sand enteropathy is a common disease in horses worldwide. The presence of sand does not always cause disease. The amount of sand required to cause clinical disease is not well established. Objective: To establish a weight-indexed cut-off for the diagnosis of clinically relevant sand enteropathy based on radiographic area. Methods: Cross-sectional. Methods: Abdominal radiographs were acquired from clinically normal horses and compared with horses with clinical sand enteropathy. Sand area and sand area per kilogram of body weight were calculated. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to differentiate groups. Results: Seventy clinically normal horses and 57 sand enteropathy cases were included. Median sand area in control horses was 1 cm per 100 kg (interquartile range 0-6 cm per 100 kg), and in sand enteropathy horses was 118 cm per 100 kg (interquartile range 83-180 cm per 100 kg). Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis revealed that using a cut-off of 21 cm per 100 kg had a sensitivity of 98.25% (CI 90.71%-99.1%) and a specificity of 92.54% (CI 83.69%-96.77%) for a diagnosis of clinical sand enteropathy. Conclusions: A weight-based cut-off of >21 cm per 100 kg for the diagnosis of sand enteropathy was determined with excellent sensitivity and good specificity. This may aid in determining if the amount of sand accumulation in a horse is of clinical consequence.
© 2025 The Author(s). Australian Veterinary Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australian Veterinary Association.
Publication Date: 2025-08-08 PubMed ID: 40778662DOI: 10.1111/avj.70007Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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This research paper discusses the determination of a weight-indexed cut-off for the diagnosis of sand enteropathy in horses based on the radiographic area of sand accumulation in the large intestine. Researchers found that a cut-off of 21 cm per 100 kg was determined with high sensitivity and good specificity which may help in diagnosing if the amount of sand accumulation is of clinical significance.
Methods and Procedure
- The research adopted a cross-sectional study design.
- Abdominal radiographs were taken from both clinically normal horses and horses diagnosed with clinical sand enteropathy.
- Researchers calculated the sand area and the sand area per kilogram of body weight for both groups.
- A Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve, which is a graphical plot that illustrates the diagnostic ability of a binary classifier, was used to distinguish between the two groups.
Study Sample
- The study included 70 clinically normal horses and 57 cases of horses with sand enteropathy.
Findings
- The median sand area in control horses was found to be 1 cm per 100 kg. The interquartile range, which represents the middle 50% of the data (being calculated as the range between the 25th and 75th percentiles), was 0-6 cm per 100 kg.
- For horses with sand enteropathy, the median sand area rose dramatically to 118 cm per 100 kg, with an interquartile range of 83-180 cm per 100 kg.
- The ROC analysis revealed that a cut-off of 21 cm of sand per 100 kg of body weight had a sensitivity of 98.25% (CI 90.71%-99.1%) and a specificity of 92.54% (CI 83.69%-96.77%) for diagnosing clinical sand enteropathy.
Conclusions
- Based on these findings, the paper concludes that a weight-based cut-off of >21 cm per 100 kg is highly sensitive and specifically accurate for diagnosing sand enteropathy.
- The determination of this cut-off point will help in identifying if sand accumulation in a horse is clinically relevant, thereby aiding veterinarians in making accurate diagnoses and delivering appropriate treatment.
Cite This Article
APA
Entwisle IG, Byrne DP, Lester GD, McConnell EJ.
(2025).
Radiographic area of large intestinal sand accumulation in horses may determine clinical significance.
Aust Vet J.
https://doi.org/10.1111/avj.70007 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
- Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
- Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
- Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
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