Evaluation of exploratory laparotomy in young horses: 102 cases (1987-1992)
Singer, E.R.; Livesey, M.A.
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 211(9): 1158-1162
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 0003-1488 PMID: 9364232 Document Number: 469987
Records of 102 horses of <25 months of age that underwent exploratory laparotomy at the Ontario Veterinary College, Canada, between January 1987 and December 1992 were reviewed. Survival rates (recovery from anaesthesia and short- and long-term survival) were compared with age, lesion type, lesion location, surgical procedure and development of clinically important postoperative intestinal adhesions. Of the 73 horses that recovered from anaesthesia, 69 were available for follow-up. Of those 69 horses, 7 (10%) died of complications associated with formation of intestinal adhesions. Age did not affect incidence of adhesion formation, lesion type, lesion location or surgical procedure performed. Long-term survival rate after surgery for correction of a small-intestinal lesion was 34%, whereas that after surgery for correction of a large-intestinal lesion was 65%. Surgical treatment of colic in young horses resulted in survival rates that were similar to those reported for mature horses. The incidence of clinically important postoperative adhesions was greater than that found for young horses in earlier studies. It is suggested that this difference may have been due to the younger age of the study population or to improvements in operative techniques and postoperative management which may have allowed more horses to survive long-term and develop complications.