Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Enterotoxigenic Clostridium perfringens type A necrotic enteritis in a foal.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 1998
- Authors:
- Bueschel, D et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Veterinary Science and Microbiology · United States
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A foal that was a mix of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse developed severe intestinal bleeding and sadly died less than two days after being born. Tests showed signs of a Clostridium perfringens type C infection, but further analysis revealed it was actually a type A strain that produces a harmful toxin. This case indicates that this type of bacteria can lead to serious intestinal problems in horses.
Abstract
A Thoroughbred-Quarter Horse crossbred foal developed hemorrhagic enteritis and died < 48 hours after birth. Gross and histologic findings were suggestive of Clostridium perfringens type C infection, and large numbers of C perfringens were isolated from intestinal contents. However, genotyping of isolates indicated that they were enterotoxigenic C perfringens type A, and isolates were found to produce C perfringens enterotoxin in vitro. This case suggests that enterotoxigenic C perfringens type A may cause enteric disease in horses.
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/9810388/