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The Use of an Air-Inflated Pillow for Assisted Recovery After General Anaesthesia in Horses: A Preliminary Study.
Abstract: Different assisted recovery techniques have been developed to enhance the safety and quality of equine recoveries. This case series evaluates the recovery of horses using an air-inflated pillow (Equi-lift®). With owner consent, the following data were collected from 19 horses undergoing open castration and 21 horses where a difficult recovery was anticipated: age, bodyweight, procedure, anaesthetic protocol, time required for proper positioning in the Equi-lift®, time to extubation, time to standing, number of attempts to stand, number of stimuli, behaviour during recumbency/first attempts, and overall impression. Horses were 1-24 years old, with a bodyweight of 483.5 ± 106.8 kg. The median time to properly position a horse into the system was 6 min (range: 1-15 min). The recovery duration was 42 min (range: 21-181 min), with a median of 4 attempts (range: 1-12 attempts) and 1 stimulus (range: 0-10) before fully standing. Recovery was calm in most horses (32/40) and moderate (with signs of anxiety and/or excitation) in 3/40 horses. In five horses, the use of this technique was discontinued. All horses recovered without any injuries or other immediate postoperative complications. In conclusion, this recovery technique shows promising results, but further studies are needed to confirm the findings.
Publication Date: 2025-02-15 PubMed ID: 40003045PubMed Central: PMC11852072DOI: 10.3390/ani15040564Google Scholar: Lookup The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
- Journal Article
Summary
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The research article reports a case study evaluation of a new technique for helping horses recover from general anaesthesia, using an air-pillow called Equi-lift. The study indicates that the method appears beneficial, but further research is needed.
Introduction
The research explores a new method to aid horses’ recovery from general anaesthesia post-surgery. Horses recovering from anaesthesia often struggle, putting them at risk of injury. To mitigate this, researchers tested a recovery technique using an air-inflated pillow called Equi-lift to give horses a more secure and safe environment during the recovery phase.
Methodology
- Two groups of horses were studied: 19 horses that underwent open castration and 21 horses in scenarios where a complex recovery was predicted.
- The following factors were recorded: age, bodyweight, nature of the procedure, anaesthetic protocol, time needed to put the horse in the Equi-lift properly, time to extubation, time to fully stand up, number of attempts required to stand, number of stimuli given to make the horse stand, behaviour during recumbency/first standing attempts, and an overall impression.
- The horses used in this study were between the ages of 1 and 24 years with a bodyweight of around 483.5 ± 106.8 kg.
Findings
- The median time for positioning a horse into the Equi-lift system, from the study data, was six minutes.
- Recovery duration had a median time of 42 minutes.
- The horses usually made an average of four attempts before they were standing fully, with typically one stimulus administered.
- Of the 40 horses tested, in most cases (32), the recovery was calm with only 3 cases showing moderate signs of anxiety or excitation.
- Five horses were not able to continue with the Equi-lift technique for unknown reasons.
Conclusion
Overall, the study concludes that the use of an air-inflated pillow shows promise in aiding recovery after general anaesthesia in horses. It seemed to ensure that the animals had a calm recovery, with fewer attempts to stand, reducing the chance of injury during recovery. No immediate postoperative complications or injuries were reported in the horses that completed the recovery with the pillow. To build on these initial findings, the researchers suggest the need for additional studies to confirm and further define the benefits of this recovery method.
Cite This Article
APA
Vandaele Z, Van den Broeke C, Merchiers A, Schauvliege S.
(2025).
The Use of an Air-Inflated Pillow for Assisted Recovery After General Anaesthesia in Horses: A Preliminary Study.
Animals (Basel), 15(4).
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani15040564 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Large Animal Surgery, Anaesthesia and Orthopaedics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
- Department of Large Animal Surgery, Anaesthesia and Orthopaedics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
- Department of Large Animal Surgery, Anaesthesia and Orthopaedics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
- Department of Large Animal Surgery, Anaesthesia and Orthopaedics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium.
Conflict of Interest Statement
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
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