Reduction of twin pregnancy in the mare by transvaginal ultrasound-guided aspiration.
Diagnosis and management of twin pregnancies in the mare are an ongoing challenge in equine reproduction. Early detection of twin and manual crush of one vesicle are the main steps in the management of twins. Few studies were carried out about the use of transvaginal ultrasound-guided aspiration (TUGA) for reduction of twins in the mare. In this study, the efficiency of TUGA for management of twin pregnancies was investigated. Reduction of unicornuate twins between 16 and 25 days of gestation gave a success rate of 70.0% (14 viable foals/20 twin pregnancies); when reduction was performed after day 40 of gestation, all mares (one unicornuate; three bicornuate) lost both. For those cases in which the window for early crush of a twin vesicle has been missed, TUGA can be successfully used to reduce twin pregnancy between 16 and 25 days of gestation.
Mari
G
G
Veterinary Clinical Department, University of Bologna, Ozzano Emilia, Bologna, Italy. gfmari@vet.unibo.it
Iacono
E
E
Merlo
B
B
Castagnetti
C
C
D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006736:Horses; D011247:Pregnancy; D018607:Pregnancy Reduction, Multifetal / Q000662:veterinary*; D013396:Suction / Q000662:veterinary*; D014427:Twins; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000662:veterinary*