Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Pulmonary edema at recovery after colic operation with in-situ nasogastric tube in a horse.
- Journal:
- Schweizer Archiv fur Tierheilkunde
- Year:
- 2011
- Authors:
- Veres-Nyéki, K O et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A horse developed a serious lung condition called pulmonary edema (fluid in the lungs) after undergoing colic surgery while under general anesthesia. Everything seemed fine until the horse stood up and started having trouble breathing, which was caused by a blockage in the airway. The issue was made worse because the horse still had a nasogastric tube (a tube placed in the stomach) in place, and a post-surgery examination revealed a problem with the larynx that affected airflow. This case serves as a warning for veterinarians about the risks of allowing a horse to recover with a nasogastric tube still inserted.
Abstract
After an uneventful general anesthesia, in a horse negative pressure pulmonary edema developed due to acute upper airway obstruction during the anesthetic recovery phase after colic surgery. No pathologic alteration of respiration was observed until the horse stood up and began suffocating. The horse had recovered with the nasogastric tube in situ. This, together with the postmortem diagnosis of laryngeal hemiplegia resulted in impairment of airflow through the larynx and development of pulmonary edema. Our objective is to alert clinicians about the possible hazard of recovery with an in-situ nasogastric tube.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21866513/