Gastroscopy

Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome (EGUS) is an increasingly common condition seen in our equine partners, with estimates upwards of 60-90% of horses being affected by stomach, or gastric ulcers.

There are a variety of reasons for gastric ulcers, including diet, feeding style and frequency, and delayed gastric motility and emptying, among others. 

Gastric ulcers can lead to a variety of clinical problems including recurrent colic-like episodes, decreased performance, irritable behavior, poor appetite, weight loss, poor hair coat, and poor condition.

Gastric ulcers can only be definitively diagnosed via gastroscope. In this procedure, a long scope with a small camera on the end is passed up the horse’s nose, to the back of the throat, down the esophagus and into the stomach. This allows your veterinarian to visualize the various structures of your horse’s stomach and the presence of current active or recently healed ulcers. In some horses, the pylorus (the exit of the stomach into the small intestine) may be able to be visualized and assessed for ulceration as well.

Gastroscopy is a procedure that can be done on the farm, stall-side. It is completed under standing sedation with the horse fasted starting the evening before.

If gastric ulcers are a concern you have, consider reaching out to your veterinarian to use gastroscopy as a diagnostic tool for your horse.