b'NEWSFRONT ERICA LARSON, News Editor Inquiries to: 859/276-6726@TH_EricaLarson E-Mail: News@TheHorse.comNew Insights on ColicAlso surprising, she said, was the fact SSI develop-ment wasnt linked to Surgery Incisional Infections bacteria reputed for being challenging to treat. After surgery one of the horses H orses undergoing colic surgery run theundergoing colic surgery.cultured positive for methi-risk of developing incisional infections.They washed and preppedcillin-resistant Staphylococ-But while one might think the amount orthe horses according tocus aureus (better known type of bacteria present at the incision site wouldstandard sterilization proto- as MRSA) and four were dictate postoperative surgical site infection (SSI)col. Then, they swabbed thepositive for bacteria that risk, researchers in the U.K. recently found thatsincision area to determineproduce extended-spectrum not necessarily the case.the type and amount ofbeta-lactamases (enzymes bacteria present after prep- that are resistant to many The development ofDipl. ECVS MRCVS, anping. They also sampled forantibiotics), but none of surgical site infection isequine surgeon at the Uni- bacterial presence at the in- these horses developed SSI, multifactorial and not justversity of Liverpool Equinecision site during and aftershe said.as simple as a direct link toHospital.surgery. Then they waited toOur study just highlights the bacteria present aroundIsgren and colleaguesfind out which horses devel- the fact thatother fac-the time of surgery, saidcollected samples from theoped an infection and whattors may also contribute to Cajsa Isgren, BVetMed,bellys midline in 31 horsesbacteria were involved. infection, said Isgren. Ultimately, they foundThese findings dont no correlation between themean sterilization before amount or type of bacteriasurgery is useless.at any stage of the samplingSterility is obviously and infection development,very important, but it is also Isgren said.important to bear in mind Generally, the team foundthat sterility doesnt stop at more bacteria at the inci- the end of surgery, she said. sion site as time progressedThe skin flora next to the post-surgery, reaching aincision can act as a source maximum about 10 daysof infection, for example, after the operation.in the postoperative period COURTESY DR. TINA HOLBERG PHILSeven of the 31 horsesif the incision is not fully developed SSIs, but thosesealed or if there is separa-were caused by bacteriation of tissues present.not present on the incisionLearn more at TheHorse.line at the time of surgery,com/160852.Isgren said. Christa Lest-Lasserre, MATendon Problems in Old Horses: What Goes Wrong? Parasite Causes Reversible BlindnessSTUDY SHORTSOld tendons injure more easily. That we know. What we didnt knowbut doSetaria digitata parasites usually infect cattlegener-now, thanks to recent study resultsis what part of the aging tendon weak- ally showing up in the abdomen. But sometimes they ens. Tendons are a bit like a rope, with lots of separate strong strands calledsettle in other organs, including the eyes, especially when fascicles, which are held together by a surrounding soft, sticky interfascicularlarvae infect animals besides their normal bovine hosts, matrix, said Hazel Screen, CEng, MIMechE, MIPEM, of Queen Mary Universityincluding horses, said SungShik Shin, DVM, PhD, of Chon-of London, in the U.K. This matrix supports the fascicles to allow them to slidenam National Universitys College of Veterinary Medicine, alongside each other and coil back after a loadan energetic use of thein South Korea. Shin and colleagues recently released the tendonis removed. We have discovered that many of the problems we see infirst report on blindness in 15 Korean horses caused by old tendons are not associated with the strong fascicle strands, but with sur- S. digitata. Veterinarians could see the worms in horses rounding interfascicular matrix, she said. It becomes less elastic with age, whicheyes, and the animals developed cloudy corneas, some stops the tendon from being able to stretch and recoil so effectively, meaning itof which became completely opaque. Treatment was suc-gets injured more easily. Further research based on these findings could lead to cessful in most cases, Shin said: They removed the worms more targeted imaging of the matrix for better diagnostics and follow-up.using local anesthesia, corticosteroid therapy removed most of the cloudiness, and the eye recovered function.10November 2018The Horse | TheHorse.com'