Necrotizing Enterocolitis in Horses: A Retrospective Study (original) (raw)

1996, Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine

The clinical and clinicopathologic characteristics of fatal necrotizing enterocolitis were examined in 16 horses (age 4 months t o 12 years). At initial presentation, 8 of 16 horses were pyrexic (median temperature, 38.4"C; range, 33.8 t o 40.6"C); all 16 were tachycardic (median heart rate, 93 bpm, range, 66 t o 138 bpm); 13 of 16 were tachypneic (median heart rate, 36 bpm, range, 16 t o 80 bpm), dehydrated, and had discolored mucous membranes. All horses that were pyrexic were also tachycardic and tachypneic. PCV was high (>45%) in 14 horses. Six horses were leukopenic (<5,000 cells/pL); 12 were neutropenic (<2,300 cells/pL), and 14 had >lo0 band neutrophils/pL. Twelve horses were acidemic IpH <7.37; range, 6.88 t o 7.33) and the venous bicarbonate concentration was low (<23 mEq/L) in 14 horses. Median anion gap in 16 horses was 31.5 mEq/L (>I5 mEq/L in 15 horses). Eleven of 16 horses were hyponatremic (<I37 mEq/ L), 1 horse was hypernatremic (>I43 mEq/L), 3 were hypokalemic (<3.2 mEq/L), 6 were hyperkalemic b4.5 mEq/L), and 14 were hypochloremic (<98 mEq/L). Serum creatinine concentrations were high b1.4 mg/dL) in 15 horses. Abdominal e noted that horses dying after a brief duration of W disease characterized by depression, diarrhea, and metabolic derangement frequently had a histologic diagnosis of necrotizing enterocolitis. There are limited descriptions of the clinical and clinicopathologic findings in horses that die of necrotizing enterocolitis,'.2 although the characteristics of horses with diarrhea are well Therefore, the purpose of this study was to describe the clinical course of horses dying of necrotizing enterocolitis. The disease was characterized by a short duration, marked metabolic alterations, and death preceded by severe abdominal pain refractory to routinely used analgesics.