Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Myelophthisic pancytopenia in a pony mare.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 1991
- Authors:
- Angel, K L et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Large Animal Surgery and Medicine
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 10-year-old pony mare was diagnosed with myelophthisic pancytopenia, which means her bone marrow was not producing enough blood cells due to a problem in the marrow itself. She had a history of recurring colic (abdominal pain) and anemia (low red blood cell count), and during the exam, the only notable finding was her pale gums. Blood tests showed she had low levels of all types of blood cells, but tests for specific infections came back negative. Despite treatment with antibiotics, a hormone to boost blood production, and steroids, her bone marrow did not start working properly again. Unfortunately, after she passed away, a thorough examination showed severe scarring in her bone marrow, but the cause of this scarring was not determined.
Abstract
Myelophthisic pancytopenia was diagnosed in a 10-year-old pony mare with a history of recurring colic and anemia. Physical findings were unremarkable, with the exception of pale mucous membranes. Hematologic analysis revealed nonregenerative pancytopenia. Testing for equine infectious anemia and antiglobulin (Coombs) yielded negative results. The mare was treated with antibiotics, boldenone undecylenate, and corticosteroids, but a regenerative bone marrow response was not seen. Postmortem examination revealed severe myelofibrosis and multiple sites of extramedullary hematopoiesis. Myelophthisic pancytopenia develops when a space-occupying lesion destroys sufficient bone marrow or disturbs marrow architecture, resulting in decreased production capacity. Pancytopenia in the pony of this report resulted from inadequate production of blood cellular components secondary to replacement of the bone marrow by myelofibrosis. Cause of the myelofibrosis was not identified.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2032911/