DIAPHRAGMATIC-HERNIA REPAIR IN 3 YOUNG HORSES

Objective- This clinical report describes surgical correction of diaph ragmatic hernia in three young horses. Study Design- Retrospective inv estigation of medical records and subsequent racing performance. Anima ls- Three young horses with diaphragmatic hernia. Results- Three young horses with signs of abdominal pain had diaphragmatic hernia causing small intestinal strangulation. The strangulated small intestine was r esected and an end-to-end jejuno-jejunal (two horses) or a side-to-sid e jejuno-cecal anastomosis (one horse) was performed. Diaphragmatic he rnias were closed with a continuous suture pattern. All horses recover ed and raced. No difference in race records was found between the subj ect horses and their siblings. One subject horse died of colic at 5 ye ars of age, but the cause of the colic was undetermined. The remaining two horses are in use as broodmares and have produced multiple foals without recurrence of signs of diaphragmatic hernia.Conclusions- Diaph ragmatic hernias can be repaired in horses. These horses can achieve r ace records similar to their siblings and can produce foals without re currence of signs of diaphragmatic hernia. (C) Copyright 1997 by The A merican College of Veterinary Surgeons.