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Certain words when spoken evoke a complex series of emotional and psychological responses within each of us. These key words can be specific to an individual based on his/her own personal experiences or universal to larger groups of people. One such evocating utterance amongst horse enthusiasts is the word "colic." "Colic is the most universally experienced health malady which occurs in the horse, regardless of breed, activity or age and it remains the single most common cause of death." |
For the owner of the afflicted horse, the illness and all it entails can be frightening. Witnessing a beloved horse in uncontrollable distress and pain, waiting the many hours in hope that medical treatment or surgery will be successful and then realizing that the worst has come to pass, leaves an emotional imprint on the horse owner's soul that is never erased. The sense of loss and helplessness sometimes can be overwhelming.
This emotional devastation among horse owners and their intense desire to protect their beloved horses has driven the veterinary profession to work diligently toward overcoming colic. Over the past two decades, equine clinicians and researchers have made great strides in the treatment of colic. Sophisticated and impressive surgical repairs have been developed here at UC Davis and elsewhere. In this day and age, veterinarians save many more horses than ever before; however, too many are still afflicted and too many are lost.
Dr. Jack Snyder and the members of his Gastroenterology Laboratory recognized that even horses who received the benefit of our new corrective surgical techniques too often unexpectedly died several days following surgery. They questioned why intestine that appeared healthy and viable to the surgeon after repair, unexplainably failed to function or died several days later. These investigators realized that new and innovative research was necessary to analyze and explain such phenomenon. To be successful, the research had to incorporate those basic medical sciences which explain the action of intestinal musculature, chemical stimuli that control intestinal motility, and the cause and nature of the individual intestinal cell's death. This Horse Report describes some of the methods our researchers have employed in their quest to improve techniques for the prevention and treatment of colic. I hope you find the articles herein interesting and informative.
I can assure you that, in the field of equine medical research, these new techniques are amongst the most revolutionary. The Gastroenterology Laboratory has already produced exciting new knowledge regarding colic and I have no doubt that its continued work will result in a decreased incidence of colic and will save many equine lives.
The research conducted by the UC Davis Center for Equine Health is supported with funds provided by the Oak Tree Racing Association, the State of California pari-mutuel fund, and contributions by private donors. Please visit The UC Davis Center For Equine Health website for addtional information at http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/ceh The Horse Report: Writer/Editor: Laurie Fio, Editor/WriterCenter for Equine HealthSchool of Veterinary MedicineUniversity of CaliforniaOne Shields AvenueDavis, CA 95616-8589phone: (530) 752-4434fax: (530) 752-9379 or e-mail: Laurie Fio