Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Enteric pythiosis in a horse.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 1990
- Authors:
- Allison, N & Gillis, J P
- Affiliation:
- College of Veterinary Medicine
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 2-year-old Quarter Horse gelding was diagnosed with enteric pythiosis, a serious intestinal infection. The horse showed signs of colic, which is abdominal pain, and while treatments like mineral oil and pain relief helped for a short time, the symptoms returned. During surgery, the veterinarians found a thickened area in the middle of the horse's small intestine, along with several firm lumps in the surrounding tissue. Further tests revealed inflammation and damage in the intestines, but the cause was not immediately clear. The treatment approach was complicated, and while the horse received care, the outcome of the treatment was not specified.
Abstract
Enteric pythiosis was diagnosed in a 2-year-old Quarter Horse gelding. The horse had signs of colic, which appeared to be alleviated by administration of mineral oil and analgesics, but only temporarily. Intestinal distention developed after initial examination. At surgery, a thick stenotic area was observed in the middle portion of the jejunum. The thick intestine and associated mesentery contained multiple firm nodules of gritty caseous material. Histopathologic findings included sclerosing eosinophilic granulomatous enteritis and peritonitis. Although the lesion resembled a response to migrating parasites and lacked hyphae in initial sections, the gross appearance of the lesion prompted the acquisition of additional sections to detect the etiologic agent.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2298680/