Choledocholithiasis attributable to a foreign body in a horse
Gerros, T.C.; McGuirk, S.M.; Biller, D.S.; Stone, W.C.; Ryan, J.
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 202(2): 301-303
1993
ISSN/ISBN: 0003-1488 PMID: 8428841 Document Number: 411777
Cholelithiasis is the most common cause of biliary obstruction in horses. Proposed mechanisms include ascariasis, biliary stasis, ascending biliary infection, and changes in bile composition. In this horse, a foreign body acted as the nidus for bile-salt deposition and ascending cholangitis. Clinical signs (intermittent abdominal pain, icterus, and pyrexia) in conjunction with high serum activity of enzymes indicative of obstructive biliary disease led to a tentative diagnosis of cholelithiasis. Ultrasonography was used to confirm the diagnosis. Postmortem examination revealed a 7-cm wooden stick to be the core of a cholelith found in the common bile duct.