Caecal intussusceptions in horses: a New Zealand perspective

To establish the prevalence of intussusceptions involving the caecum in a population of horses admitted to a university hospital for colic.

Retrospective clinical study

Medical records of all horses admitted to the Massey University Veterinary Teaching Hospital between 1991 and 2004 were examined for information of those horses diagnosed with an intussusception involving the caecum.

A total of 135 horses were admitted for colic surgery during the study period and 61 horses had a diagnosis of ileocaecal (37), caecocaecal (5) or caecocolic intussusception (19) made either at surgery or necropsy. Of the horses with ileocaecal intussusception, 32 had an incomplete hand-sewn ileocaecostomy without reduction and 29 survived to discharge. All the horses with caecocaecal intussusceptions were diagnosed preoperatively via rectal examination and/or transabdominal ultrasound: 2 were euthanased at surgery and 3 survived to discharge. In the 19 horses with caecocolic intussusceptions, manually reduction at surgery was performed in 6 and 5 of them survived to discharge. A typhlectomy was performed via a colotomy in 6 horses, 3 of which survived to discharge.

The high prevalence of intussusceptions involving the caecum seen at this referral centre may indicate a higher prevalence in New Zealand than is reported elsewhere in the world.

Intussusceptions involving the caecum should be considered as a differential diagnosis in horses presenting with chronic low-grade colic. Transabdominal ultrasound is useful for identifying caecocaecal and caecocolic intussusceptions. Hand-sewn side-to-side incomplete ileocaecostomy is a quick, effective and safe method of surgical treatment of ileocaecal intussusceptions.