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Postanaesthetic brachial compartmental syndrome in a horse
Author(s) -
Louro Luís Filipe,
FernándezFlores Francisco Flores,
Bautista Oscar DiazDelgado,
Senior Mark
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
veterinary record case reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.165
H-Index - 4
ISSN - 2052-6121
DOI - 10.1136/vetreccr-2019-000974
Subject(s) - lameness , medicine , forelimb , horse , sepsis , foot (prosody) , surgery , anesthesia , anatomy , paleontology , linguistics , philosophy , biology
A 9‐year‐old Irish sports horse gelding was anaesthetised out‐of‐hours for management of digital flexor tendon sheath sepsis after a left hind foot penetration. In the postanaesthetic period, the patient manifested a right forelimb non‐weight bearing lameness. Diagnostic imaging and serum biochemistry were unremarkable. The animal progressively deteriorated and became recumbent. After consultation with the owner, euthanasia was performed on welfare grounds. A postmortem examination was performed to establish the cause of the right forelimb lameness. After excluding all other probable causes of postanaesthetic lameness, it was concluded that the patient manifested a postanaesthetic compartmental syndrome due to haemorrhage associated with the ulnar nerve developed intraoperatively. This case report discusses factors associated with increased anaesthetic‐related mortality in elective surgical procedures performed out‐of‐hours, other causes of postanaesthetic forelimb lameness and diagnosis of, and treatment options for, brachial compartment syndrome.