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Pre-Surgical Information
Spaying or neutering your pet is a big step! There is a lot to consider
when we are planning your pet’s surgery. Here is some information to help
you make wise decisions.
Click here . . .
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Special LibraryOur Special Library
is a collection of informative articles on a variety of health topics.
Click here . . .
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Discharge InstructionsClick here for
information on how to care for your pet at home.
Click here . . .
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Colic
Colic is a symptom, not a disease. The trick
is figuring out which disease is causing the symptoms
Colic means abdominal pain. That's all. Abdominal
pain is only a symptom, not a disease. We all have had
colic at one time or another.
The Signs Horses with colic, or
abdominal pain, show their discomfort in several ways.
Rolling, lying down, stamping, urinating frequently, not eating,
tail wringing, and looking repeatedly at their flanks are all
signs of colic. Horses with colic are introverted, do not
interact with people, do not look around at things in the
environment, and may even have a painful expression. They
do not eat or drink, and they may or may not pass stool and/or
gas.
If Colic is a Symptom, What is the Disease?
Diseases cause symptoms. If colic is a symptom, what then
is the disease? The faint of heart will want to quit
reading here, because what follows is neither short nor simple.
The answer is that there are hundreds of diseases that cause
colic.
It is useful to spend a few minutes and think about abdominal
pain in the species we all know the best, humans. How many
different causes of abdominal pain are there in people? A
list would look something like this:
upset stomach
pancreatitis stomach
cancer
gas cramps
gall stones
peritonitis
food
poisioning appendicitis ovarian
cycts
ulcers
diverticulitis
kidney stones
Intestinal twists
splenic abcess
intestinal obstruction
and the list goes on. All of these conditions cause colic,
or abdominal pain, in humans. Some are serious and
life-threatening, some not so serious. There is a similar list
for horses. The point here is that many different
diseases cause the symptom of colic. Our goal is to
identify the disease that is causing the symptom.
We start with a physical exam. We measure heart rate,
observe the color and texture of their mucous membranes, measure
their capillary refill time, evaluate their hydration, listen to
their GI sounds, take their temperature, percuss their abdomen,
look at their stool, quantitize thier level of pain, listen to
their heart, pass a nasogastric tube, perform rectal palpation,
and sometimes we tap their abdomen. Occasionally we do
bloodwork. All these parameters are considered together,
and we make a working diagnosis.
To make a working diagnosis, we divide all the possible causes
of colic pain into two groups, the obviously
non-life-threatening diseases, and the obviously
life-threatening diseases. Sometimes we can't tell for
sure, and so we make a third category called treat and observe.
Non-Life-Threatening Causes of Colic In
the non-life-threatening group, we find things like gas cramps,
indigestion, and impactions. These horse typically have
mild to moderate pain, generally good vital signs, and
hyperactive GI sounds. They respond well to medication.
Obviously Life-Threatening Causes of Colic
In this group we find diseases like intestinal obstruction,
intestinal twists, severe colitis, ruptured impactions, and
advanced intestinal displacements. These horses have
severe, unrelenting pain, deteriorating vital signs, and no GI
sounds. They need surgery or to be put to sleep.
Treat and Observe In this category we find
survivable diseases like especially painful gas cramps as well
as the life-threateniong diseases in their early stages.
These horses have signs that overlap, and do not give a clear
indication as to the severity of the condition. Here, we
start medical treatment and observe closely for improvement or
worsening.
Treatment for Colic Just as there are different
treatments for the different diseases that cause colic in
humans, for instance gas cramps, gall stones, and appendicitis,
so are there different treatments for the various diseases that
cause colic in horses. The treatment used on your horse
will depend on the disease. Treatment options include any
o f
several different pain-killers, anti-spasmodics, mineral oil
infusions, intravenous fluids, and occasionally antibiotics.
Some Horses with Colic Need Surgery
The surgery is exploratory surgery, where although we don't know
for sure what the exact problem is, we have narrowed it down to
a life-threatening problem that will take surgical treatment.
Colic surgery is something that is best done in referral
centers, where they have excellent facilities and a trained
surgical team lead by an experienced surgeon who does colic
surgeries every week.
Colic surgeries can cost from $2,000 up to $10,000, depending on
the nature and severity of the condition. Survival rates
vary, again depending on the nature and severity of the
condition. If I suspect that your horse has a condition
that may require surgery, I will bring the possibility up early
on. It is important to know whether surgery is an option,
because if it is we will do things differently than if surgery
is not an option.
Most Horses with Colic recover with appropriate treatment.
It is my experience locally that probably 80% of the colicy
horses that I see have non-surgical conditions. However,
each case is different, and I feel that it is important to
evaluate each and every case. Although many practitioners
will prescribe medications over the phone or over the counter
without even examining the patient, I will not. I don't
think that it is in the best interests of the horse or the owner
to do things this way. |
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