Nutritional and clinicopathological effects of post operative parenteral nutrition following small intestinal resection and anastomosis in the mature horse.
BACKGROUND
There is an absence of data describing the nutritional requirements and nutritional status of horses following surgery for colic; furthermore, the potential effect of parenteral nutrition (PN) on improving nutritional status in such cases is unknown.


OBJECTIVE
Post operative colic cases suffer from a potentially detrimental negative energy balance and the PN formulation developed in this study would lead to clinicopathologically detectable improvements in the subjects' nutritional status.


METHODS
Several clinicopathological variables, some known to be associated with nutritional status, were compared in 2 groups of horses in the post operative period following colic surgery; Group N (n = 15) were treated with PN and Group C (n = 15) were starved routinely.


RESULTS
Group N had significantly lower serum concentrations of triglycerides, total bilirubin, albumin and urea and significantly higher serum concentrations of glucose and insulin compared with Group C in the post operative period.


CONCLUSIONS
The control group of horses demonstrated significant clinicopathological evidence of starvation and the described PN protocol resulted in a demonstrably improved nutritional status in the treated horses.


CONCLUSIONS
Further study is required to investigate clinical benefits and possible harmful side effects of post operative parenteral nutrition before the technique can be advocated for widespread use in practice.
Durham
A E
AE
The Liphook Equine Hospital, Forest Mere, Liphook, Hampshire GU30 7JG, UK.
Phillips
T J
TJ
Walmsley
J P
JP
Newton
J R
JR
D000714:Anastomosis, Surgical / Q000662:veterinary; D000818:Animals; D003085:Colic / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D006734:Horse Diseases / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy*; D006736:Horses; D007421:Intestine, Small / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D009752:Nutritional Status; D010288:Parenteral Nutrition; D011182:Postoperative Care / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome