Autoimmune haemolytic anaemia in eight horses
Mair, T.S.; Taylor, F.G.; Hillyer, M.H.
Veterinary Record 126(3): 51-53
1990
ISSN/ISBN: 0042-4900 PMID: 2301125 Document Number: 367450
Autoimmune haemolytic anaemia was diagnosed in eight horses on the basis of a positive Coomb's test. The disease was considered to be idiopathic in three cases and secondary to another condition in five. The clinical signs included dullness and depression, pyrexia, jaundice and haemoglobinuria. In addition to anaemia, haematological evaluation commonly revealed auto-agglutination of red cells and anisocytosis; reticulocytosis and an increased mean corpuscular volume were less commonly observed. Four horses were successfully treated with dexamethasone, but the other four were destroyed or died because of the underlying disease.