TABLE 12.9.
Esophageal Disorders of Horses
| Disorder | Presenting Complaints | Diagnosis | Treatment | Selected References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acquired Disorders | ||||
| Choke | Nasal discharge of saliva and food; retching; excessive salivation; cough; sweating; extension of head and neck | Passage of a nasogastric tube; endoscopy | Medical and surgical treatment options as described in text | 1187, 1188, 1189 |
| Foreign bodies | Acute or recurrent choke | Endoscopy; radiography | Manual retrieval or removal; endoscopic removal; surgery | 1190, 1191, 1192, 1193, 1194 |
| External compression | Acute or recurrent choke | Endoscopy; radiography; ultrasound | Removal of the obstructive mass | 1195 |
| Muscular hypertrophy | No clinical signs observed in most affected horses; may predispose to esophageal diverticula | Incidental finding at necropsy | None | 1196 |
| Gastroesophageal reflux disease | Inappetence; bruxism; ptyalism; colic; gastric reflux; weight loss; exercise intolerance | Esophageal and gastric endoscopy | Correct primary problem; decrease gastric acidity; gastric protectants; surgery | 1197, 1198, 1199 |
| Stricture | Recurrent choke; weight loss | Endoscopy; contrast radiography | Bougienage; surgery | 49, 53, 1200, 1201, 1202, 1203, 1204, 1205, 1206, 1207 |
| Diverticulaa | Recurrent choke; weight loss | Endoscopy; contrast radiography | Surgery | 1206, 1208, 1209, 1210, 1211 |
| Perforation, trauma | Salivation; bruxism; cough; nasal discharge; sepsis | Endoscopy | Enteral feeding; supportive care | 1212, 1213 |
| Megaesophagusa | Recurrent choke; intermittent food and saliva from nares; pneumonia; weight loss; colic | Endoscopy; contrast radiography | Nutritional modification as described in text | 1214, 1215 |
| Neoplasia | Recurrent choke; weight loss | Endoscopy; biopsy | Surgical resection | 1216, 1217 |
| Granulation tissue | Recurrent choke; swelling in the region of the cervical esophagus | Endoscopy; biopsy | Laser surgical resection | 1218 |
| Congenital Disorders | ||||
| Tubular duplication of the esophagus | Young horse; mass caudal to mandible; dyspnea; dysphagia; nasal regurgitation of food and saliva | Radiography and ultrasonography of mass; endoscopy; contrast radiography | Surgical excision | 1219, 1220 |
| Cystic duplication of the esophagus | Young horse; mass in cervical or throatlatch area; recurrent choke; bruxism; excessive salivation; nasal regurgitation of saliva and feed; weight loss | Endoscopy; ultrasonography; aspiration of cyst; contrast radiography | Surgical excision; marsupialization of cyst | 1224, 1225, 1226, 1227, 1228, 1229, 1230, 1231 |
| Vascular ring anomaly | Cervical swelling after introduction to solid feed; chronic respiratory disease | Endoscopy; contrast radiography; computed tomography; magnetic resonance imaging | Surgical correction | 1224, 1225, 1226, 1227, 1228, 1229, 1230, 1231 |
| Congenital stenosis | Nasal regurgitation of milk; cough | Endoscopy; contrast radiography | Dietary management as described in text | 36 |
| Ectasia | Nasal regurgitation of milk | Histologic evaluation | None described | 1232, 1233 |
a
May occur as congenital or acquired lesions.