veterinarian | Horse Racing Free Tips

Heart-Rate Variability May Indicate Outcome Of Colic Cases

Colic, a catch-all term for abdominal pain in horses, can be caused by a variety of reasons; it can be a life-or-death situation and requires immediate veterinary care. Colic is stressful for horses; horses that are actively colicking have an increased cortisol level and heart rate. A new study shows that heart-rate variability may be a key indicator in assessing the possible outcome of colic cases.

Drs. Heidrun Gehlen, Maria-Dorothee Faust, Remigiusz Grzeskowiak and Dagmar Trachsel of the Free University in Berlin, and Dr. Remigiusz Grzeskowiak of the University of Tennessee wanted to determine if horses showed varying stress levels with different types of colic, therefore warranting different treatment strategies.

The team used 43 horses admitted to two different equine hospitals for colic and categorized them into three groups: surgical, conservative (non-surgical) and euthanized. The scientists studied the blood tests and heart-rate variability of the horses at admission, 24 hours after admission and at discharge.

The team found that heart rate and cortisol levels decreased the day after admission and on the day of discharge in both the surgical and non-surgical groups of horses, indicating that they were not as stressed as they were during their intake into the hospital.

However, decreases in heart rate and cortisol levels were not seen in the horses that were ultimately euthanized. The difference in heart rate in the euthanized and non-euthanized horses was most obvious the day after admission.

The team concluded that heart-rate variability can offer treating veterinarians important information on the stress level of colicking horses and may be helpful in assessing the possible outcome. They suggest further studies be completed.

Read the full study here.

Diagnostic Tool Offers Medical-Grade Imaging In Standing Equines

Prisma Imaging has successfully developed a new system for equine diagnostic imaging that addresses the shortcomings of current technology. Founded in 2016, Prisma developed a system that captures CT and radiographic images of the entire anatomy of a standing, weight-bearing and conscious horse. The advanced imaging capabilities established through Prisma's research and development is different from anything available in the marketplace. The resulting system represents a game-changer for the overall effect on equine diagnostics and horse health care.

Other ventures have attempted to build equine CT systems but have been unable to provide a comprehensive solution to image the horse's entire anatomy. Other devices are repurposed human medical CT systems. Most systems require that the horse be under anesthesia, representing a risk to their health and safety. In 2015, another venture's attempt employed the use of robotics, but never developed a working system.

“Miscues in the industry demonstrate a strong demand for better equine CT imaging,” said Michael Silver, Prisma's founder and chief operating officer. “Building next-generation imaging to benefit the veterinary industry and horse health is the core of Prisma's mission.”

Prisma's system is distinctly different and was developed to ensure every component meets high-performance specifications. Fully documented, thorough testing by third-party experts have been performed on every aspect of the system.

Authorities on imaging have taken notice of the groundbreaking work of the Prisma team.

“The testing done with Prisma's system demonstrates image quality which has eliminated the risks to achieve commercial readiness,” said Josh Star-Lack, principal scientist at Varex Imaging, author of over 100 papers and co-inventor of 27 patents.

According to Silver, their unique solution is facilitated by three major innovations:

1) Robotics

2) Using two types of radiographic technologies

3) A motion correction system to compensate for the movement of a conscious horse

Prisma's system has successfully performed in vivo imaging of live horse subjects and has demonstrated the efficacy of the system's multiple technologies. Prisma's CT image quality has proven to be on par with the top medical-grade CT systems.

The CT images taken with Prisma's system revealed all of the relevant anatomy and was virtually indistinguishable from those taken with medical-grade CT systems.” said Kurt Selberg, DVM, MS, DACVR, associate professor veterinary diagnostic imaging, Colorado State University and lead imaging practitioner at the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games in Tryon.

Silver projects that commercial installations of the system will begin in mid-2021. “Prior to purchase, Prisma will require the customer's inspection and full satisfaction that all its capabilities are fully functional and meet or exceed the highest standards,” Silver said.

Learn more about Prisma here.

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What Does ‘Statistically Significant’ Actually Mean?

You've most likely heard or read the term “statistically significant” numerous times in your life. What does that actually mean and how do we determine if something is significant or not?

In the most basic form, statistically significant means something that is not due to random variability (not attributed to chance).

If we want to get technical, statistical significance is all about the determination of the null hypothesis. The null hypothesis is the hypothesis that there is no significant difference between specified populations, any observed difference is due to sampling or experimental error. By performing hypothesis testing, you get a result known as the p-value, which is the probability of observing extreme results in the data you have collected. A p-value of 5% or lower is typically considered to be statistically significant.

What does this mean for the veterinary and horse communities?

By measuring the relationship between multiple variables (i.e. new diet vs. standard diet, vaccine vs. no vaccine, etc.), this allows us to establish the likelihood that an outcome is caused by what we are studying instead of just randomly happening. This means we can determine if something is actually working better than leaving things alone. Nutritionists do this all the time when testing new rations; pharmaceutical companies do this when testing new drugs or vaccines. Veterinarians, and more likely research scientists, may use this to determine if a new type of surgery or expensive treatment is worthwhile.

How does it work?

While knowing how to perform these tests is important for researchers, from a practical standpoint remember two important factors: sampling error and probability. There is always the possibility that differences you see when measuring a sample are just the result of random variability (“background noise”) or just dumb luck. This is sampling error. Probability is just that, the likelihood of something actually happening. The higher the probability of a specific event or outcome, the more likely it is to happen. However, remember that while you may have a high probability, you cannot guarantee certainty.

The use of a p-value of 5%, written as p < 0.05, the most commonly chosen value, means we are looking at a 5% likelihood of something happening by chance alone (i.e. a one in 20 chance of that being the result). That means that whatever we are looking at statistically, the results are 95% due to what we are testing, be that a new drug, vaccine, treatment or surgery.

The take home message

Once testing and analysis are complete, a p-value that is low indicates a statistically significant difference. However, that does not mean the difference will automatically be important or useful. For practical significance (i.e. noteworthy), we need to determine if the difference is large enough to actually be meaningful. A relatively large difference would be useful and practical. A small difference might not be worth the effort or cost for only a small impact. This can cause issues with regard to the interpretation of results and what decisions to make based on the data. We will be discussing these issues and concerns in future stories in this publication, so watch for our future articles.

Colic No. 1 Reason For Emergency Vet Calls Study Finds

A University of Nottingham study has found that colic, wounds and lameness are the most common reasons for veterinarian to make emergency calls to visit horses after hours. The study was based on 2,602 emergency calls to two major vet practices between 2011 and 2013.

Drs. Adelle Bowden, Polina Boynova, Marnie Louise Brennan, Gary England, Sarah Freeman, John Burford, Tim Mair and Wendy Furness found that 35 percent (923) of the emergency calls were placed for colic issues; after-hours calls for wounds encompasses 511 calls (11 percent). Emergency calls for lameness accounted for 288 calls (11 percent). Most of the calls (58 percent) needed only a single treatment, but a quarter of the calls needed follow-up treatments.

According to the veterinarians, only 480 of the 2,602 cases were considered critical; 43 percent of those were related to colic. In total, 13 percent of the horse's emergency calls were made for were euthanized. It is unclear if this was related to acute disease or the deterioration of a pre-existing condition.

The study team noted that many of the emergency calls had critical outcomes and the majority were euthanized. They note that this is an important welfare concern that requires additional investigation.