VCS 503: SOFT TISSUE SURGERY AND LAMENESS LECTURE NOTES DR TIMOTHY, A.O. OLUSA (DVM, MVSc) DEPARTMENT OF VETERINARY MEDICINE AND SURGERY UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE ABEOKUTA, NIGERIA MAY, 2010

TOPIC: COLIC IN HORSES INTRODUCTION Colic is a term coined centuries ago for gastrointestinal diseases It is derived from the word ‘colon’ which is the presumed seat of the disorder The term colic have come to apply to all pathological states in which the animal exhibits behavior strongly indicative of pain or discomfort arising from the abdomen Colic is not a disease but a symptom of an undergoing disease/condition and it represent a challenge of differential diagnosis

differential diagnosis of colic Colic may be a feature of the following conditions or disease groups ► Stomach & intestinal diseases ► Liver & biliary diseases ► Diseases of the uroginital organ ► Locomator system (e.g back pain & laminitis) ► Starvation or thirst

Review of the equine GIT anatomy

AETIOLOGY AND PATHOGENESIS The actual cause of colic is unknown! The anatomic peculiarities of the equine GIT plays an essential role as a predisposing factor for the condition The horse’s relative inability to vomit makes emptying more difficult if the stomach becomes distended; which may results into gastric rupture Impaction are the most common causes of colic in horses

SOME RISK FACTORS FOR COLIC: Gastrointestinal parasites e.g: strongylus vulgaris; parascaris equrum and anoplocephala perfoliata 2. Poor dentition, age or debility 3. Foreign bodies’ ingestion e.g plastic, sand, wood etc which can lead to fecalith, enteropathy and obstruction of the ascending colon 4. Restriction of water supply 5. Diet /feeding errors 6. History of previous colic 7. Metrologic factors (weather changes, thunderstorms)

Typical pain of colic is caused by spasm in the intestinal wall and three conditions are distinguished as follows