Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Urinary bladder rupture in a two-year-old horse: sequel to a surgically repaired neonatal injury.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 1987
- Authors:
- Pankowski, R L & Fubini, S L
- Affiliation:
- Department of Clinical Sciences · United States
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A two-year-old Thoroughbred colt was brought to the vet three days after a routine surgery to remove an undescended testicle because he was very tired, had a swollen belly, and was urinating small amounts frequently. The vet diagnosed him with a ruptured bladder, which was determined by the large amount of fluid in his abdomen and the differences in certain blood and fluid tests. This colt had previously had surgery for a bladder rupture when he was just four days old, and during surgery, the vet found a 5-centimeter tear in the bladder that was repaired. The earlier injury may have weakened the bladder wall, and the combination of a full bladder and the stress of anesthesia could have led to this new rupture. The treatment involved repairing the tear, and it was successful in addressing the issue.
Abstract
After routine cryptorchid castration, a 2-year-old Thoroughbred colt was admitted 72 hours later because of depression, abdominal distention, and pollakiuria, with production of small quantities of urine. A diagnosis of a ruptured bladder was made on the basis of a large volume of abdominal fluid and a disparity between the urea nitrogen and creatinine concentrations in the serum (70 mg/dl and 8.4 mg/dl, respectively) and in the abdominal fluid (154 mg/dl and 43 mg/dl, respectively). The colt had undergone surgical correction of a ruptured urinary bladder at 4 days of age, and a 5-cm tear through one of the previous scars was identified and repaired during exploratory celiotomy. The previous injury to the bladder was extensive and may have left an inherent weakness in the bladder wall. Evidence of adhesion formation or urethral obstruction was not found. The combination of a full bladder and the trauma associated with induction of anesthesia may have contributed to the recurrence of bladder rupture.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2889712/