Current Topics in Medical Colic.

The list of medical causes of acute or chronic colic in horses is extensive. The purpose of this article is to review 4 medical causes of equine colic with a focus on newer trends in treatment. The 4 topics selected include gastric impaction, gastric glandular disease, colon displacement, and inflammatory bowel disease.

Clinical Pathology in the Foal.

The dynamic physiologic changes and unique diet during the neonatal period contribute to key differences in clinicopathologic test results of healthy foals relative to healthy adult horses. When reporting results, most diagnostic laboratories only provide reference intervals for mature horses. Thus, failure to recognize the unique differences that occur in foals relative to adult horses can lead to erroneous interpretation of neonatal clinical pathologic values. Thus, the main objective of this article was to review distinct features of common clinicopathologic tests in foals, relative to mature horses.

Pseudohyperkalemia in horses with rhabdomyolysis reported by an enzymatic chemistry analyzer.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate pseudohyperkalemia occurring in horses experiencing rhabdomyolysis when serum chemistry profiles are run on an VetScan VS2 analyzer (Abaxis). ANIMALS: 18 horses with rhabdomyolysis (creatine kinase [CK] > 1,000 U/L). METHODS: In 3 horses with serum CK activities > 5,800 U/L and persistent serum potassium concentrations of > 8.5 mmol/L (VetScan VS2), potassium concentrations were reevaluated with either i-STAT Alinity Base Station (Abbott), Catalyst (Idexx), or Cobas c501 (Roche) ion-specific analyzers. Paired serum samples from 15 additional horses (median serum CK activity, 7,601 U/L; range, 1,134 to 192,447 U/L) were analyzed on both VetScan VS2 and Cobas c501 machines. Serum potassium concentrations were compared between the VetScan VS2 and ion-specific analyzers by Bland-Altman and Wilcoxon ranked tests and correlated to log10 CK activity via Pearson correlation. RESULTS: Serum potassium concentrations were significantly higher on the VetScan VS2 (6.7 ± 1.6 mmol/L) versus the ion-specific analyzers (4.0 ± 1.1 mmol/L; P < .0001), with high bias shown in Bland-Altman analysis (43.1 ± 27.9). Potassium concentrations positively correlated with log10 CK activity with the VetScan VS2 (R2 = 0.51; P = .003) but not the Cobas (R2 = 0.09; P = .3) analyzer. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: An alternate analyzer to the VetScan VS2 should be used to evaluate serum potassium concentrations in horses with rhabdomyolysis because the VetScan VS2 methodology uses lactate dehydrogenase, which increases in serum with rhabdomyolysis and falsely elevates potassium concentrations.

Serum bile acids concentrations in healthy and clinically ill neonatal foals.

BACKGROUND: Reference ranges for serum bile acids (SBA) concentration are well established in healthy adult horses. Increased values are indicative of hepatic disease. HYPOTHESES: SBA concentrations are significantly greater in the neonatal period compared with mature horses, and illness in the neonatal period will further increase SBA. ANIMALS: Ten healthy mature horses, 12 healthy foals, and 31 clinically ill foals. METHODS: Prospective cross-sectional study. Blood samples were obtained once from the mature horses, from healthy foals immediately after birth, at 2 days, and at 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 weeks of age; and from ill foals less than 1 month of age at the time of admission to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. SBA concentrations were determined enzymatically and by radioimmunoassay. Total and direct bilirubin and triglyceride concentrations were measured, as well as sorbitol dehydrogenase (SDH) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) activities. RESULTS: There was a significant negative correlation between age and SBA concentration. Compared with mature horses, SBA concentrations were significantly greater in healthy foals at each collection time over the first 6 weeks of life. Radioimmunoassay values were lower than enzymatic SBA values, with increasing bias as the mean difference between values increased. When comparing age-matched values between healthy and ill foals, there were no significant differences in SBA. None of the ill foals had a primary diagnosis of hepatic disease. There was no significant correlation between the SBA concentration and the bilirubin or triglyceride concentrations or the GGT activity. There was a significant direct correlation between increased SBA and serum SDH activity in healthy foals only. CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: SBA concentrations in foals are significantly higher in the early neonatal period, underscoring the importance of using age-matched references when evaluating clinical pathology values during the neonatal period.

Synthetic adrenocorticotropic hormone stimulation tests in healthy neonatal foals.

BACKGROUND: Cosyntropin (adrenocorticotropic hormone [ACTH]) stimulation tests are used to evaluate adrenal function. Low-dose ACTH stimulation tests are the most accurate method for diagnosing relative adrenal insufficiency in critically ill humans but have not been evaluated in foals. HYPOTHESIS: Peak serum cortisol concentrations in healthy foals will not be significantly different after intravenous administration of 1, 10, 100, and 250 microg of cosyntropin. ANIMALS: 14 healthy neonatal foals, 3-4 days of age. METHODS: A randomized cross-over model was used in which cosyntropin (1, 10, 100, or 250 microg) was administered intravenously on days 3 and 4 of life. Blood samples were collected before and 30, 60, 90, 120, and 150 minutes after administration of cosyntropin for determination of serum cortisol concentration. RESULTS: Serum cortisol concentrations did not significantly increase after administration of 1 microg of cosyntropin. Cortisol concentration peaked 30 minutes after administration of 10 microg of cosyntropin and 90 minutes after 100 and 250 microg of cosyntropin. There was no relationship between cosyntropin dose and serum cortisol concentration at 30 minutes. Compared with the 10-microg dose, 100 and 250 microg of cosyntropin induced significantly greater cortisol concentrations at 90 minutes, at which point the 10-microg cosyntropin-dose cortisol values were indistinguishable from baseline. There was no significant difference in the area under the cortisol concentration curve between the 100- and 250-microg doses. No effect of day of testing or foal weight on peak cortisol concentration was detected. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: The results of this study suggest that 10- and 100-microg doses of cosyntropin would be appropriate for evaluating adrenal function in neonatal foals.

Serum lactoferrin and immunoglobulin G concentrations in healthy or ill neonatal foals and healthy adult horses.

BACKGROUND: Lactoferrin is a colostral glycoprotein with antimicrobial properties. HYPOTHESES: (1) Serum lactoferrin and immunoglobulin G (IgG) concentrations are correlated and increase in healthy foals after ingestion of colostrum; (2) compared to healthy foals, ill foals will have lower lactoferrin concentrations that correlate with their IgG concentration, neutrophil count, the diagnosis of sepsis, and survival; and (3) plasma concentrations of lactoferrin will be less than serum concentrations. ANIMALS: Healthy foals (n = 16), mature horses (n = 10), and ill foals 1-4 days old (n = 111) that were examined for suspected sepsis were used for blood collection. Colostrum was obtained from 10 healthy mares unrelated to the foals. METHODS: Blood was obtained from the healthy foals at birth and 1-3 days of age and from the ill foals at admission. Serum IgG was quantified by single radial immunodiffusion (SRID). Lactoferrin concentrations in colostrum and blood were determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay. The sepsis score, blood culture results, neutrophil counts, and survival were obtained on ill foals. RESULTS: The mean colostral lactoferrin concentration was 21.7 microg/mL. Compared to values at birth, serum IgG (18+/-2 versus 2,921+/-245 mg/dL, SEM) and lactoferrin (249+/-39 versus 445+/-63 ng/mL, SEM) concentrations were significantly greater in healthy foals 1-3 days old. Serum lactoferrin concentration in 1-3-day-old healthy foals was not different from mature horses or ill foals. IgG and lactoferrin concentrations were significantly correlated only in healthy foals. Serum lactoferrin concentrations were significantly lower in ill neutropenic foals. The serum IgG concentration was significantly lower in ill foals as compared to healthy foals. Only serum IgG was significantly less in ill foals with a positive sepsis score and in nonsurvivors, Plasma lactoferrin concentrations were lower than serum concentrations, although values were significantly correlated. CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Although both serum IgG and lactoferrin concentrations increase in healthy foals after ingestion of colostrum, only serum IgG is significantly correlated with the sepsis score and outcome.

Hypercalcemia and high serum parathyroid hormone-related protein concentration in a horse with multiple myeloma.

A 13-year-old gelding was examined because of weight loss, hyperglobulinemia, and hypercalcemia. Possible causes of hypercalcemia that were considered included renal failure, primary hyperparathyroidism, vitamin D toxicosis, and malignancy. There was no history of vitamin D ingestion, and serum creatinine and parathyroid hormone concentrations were normal, making renal failure and primary hyperparathyroidism unlikely. The hypercalcemia was suspected to be a result of malignancy, but thorough testing did not reveal any neoplastic disease. Eight months later, serum parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) concentration was high, supporting the suggestion that hypercalcemia was a result of malignancy. In addition, radial immunodiffusion confirmed a selective 300-fold increase in serum IgA concentration. The horse was euthanatized, and postmortem examination revealed neoplastic infiltrates in the kidneys, lymph nodes, liver, and bone marrow. Neoplastic cells had morphologic characteristics of plasma cells, and immunohistochemical staining confirmed that neoplastic cells were expressing PTHrP and IgA. The final diagnosis was multiple myeloma with expression of IgA paraprotein.

Treatment of endotoxemia.

Although recognition of clinical signs of endotoxemia is not difficult, determining the underlying cause for the development of endotoxemia may be a challenging task. For this reason, importance must be placed on performance of a thorough physical examination, attention to detail, and determination of whether or not surgical intervention is required. In most instances, a definitive diagnosis may require repeated examinations and laboratory work. In the meantime, affected animals require treatment for endotoxemia, with the aim being to reduce the duration of endotoxemia, prevent the interaction of additional endotoxins with cell surface receptors, and reduce the synthesis and release of inflammatory mediators.