Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Foal with vitamin D2 poisoning - symptoms and treatment
By Harrington, D D·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·1982·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Acute vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) toxicosis in horses: case report and experimental studies.
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 6-month-old foal was found to have serious health issues due to accidental poisoning from vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol), which caused abnormal mineral buildup in its soft tissues. In a related study, three 18-month-old horses were given different doses of ergocalciferol for 21 days. The horses that received the highest dose showed signs of illness, including being very tired, eating less than usual, weakness, stiff limbs, and not growing properly. They also had high levels of phosphorus in their blood, while the horse that received a lower dose did not show any serious symptoms. Overall, the treatment with ergocalciferol caused significant health problems in the foal and the horse that received the highest dose, indicating that high levels of this vitamin can be toxic.
Abstract
Acute accidental vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) toxicosis was diagnosed in a 6-month-old foal with extensive lesions of soft tissue mineralization. In an experimental study, three 18-month-old horses were given ergocalciferol per os at a rate of 9,300, 22,200, or 47,200 IU/kg of body weight/day for 21 days. Clinical signs or lesions were not seen in horses given the low and intermediate doses, whereas the horse receiving the highest dose developed clinical signs and lesions similar to those noted in the foal. Signs included depression, loss of appetite, weakness, limb stiffness with impaired mobility, and cessation of growth or weight loss. Gross and histologic lesions of mineralization of various soft tissues, especially of the endocardium and wall of large blood vessels, were seen in the foal and the horse given the high dose. Marked, persistent, hyperphosphatemia (7.0 to 13.0 mg of P/dl of serum) developed in each horse. The horse given the intermediate dose remained normocalcemic. Horses given the low and high doses became hypercalcemic (13.6 to 14.5 mg of Ca/dl of serum), but serum calcium concentrations varied from day to day and both horses were normocalcemic at necropsy (12.4 to 12.7 mg of Ca/dl of serum). Distal metacarpal bone ash concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium of the foal were mg/g of bone ash) 400.5, 180.5, and 5.30, respectively. In the horses, treatment with ergocalciferol also had no significant effect on serum magnesium (1.88 to 2.18 mg/dl of serum) or distal metacarpal bone ash concentrations of calcium (352.5 to 362.5 mg/g of bone ash), phosphorus (182.5 to 184.0 mg/g of bone ash), or magnesium (5.48 to 6.02 mg/g of bone ash).
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6979534/