Azoturia - Or not as it turns out...

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katemiddleton

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Slightly confusing...
Team chasing last year, my mare jumps a lovely quick clear round quite a challenging course, really pleased with her, however after crossing line I did my usual jump off and lead her round and noticed after the first lap she did a couple of short steps, she then proceeded to perform a perfect "text book" episode of quite severe acute azoturia. She was 19, fully fit, hunting and team chasing each week, and had never showed any signs before (I've owned her 16 years). No diet, exercise or yard changes, drinking as normal and warmed up and competed fine. She's also on what could be considered an azoturia-preventing diet anyway as well as starch high diets and similar blow her brains!

Vet on course treated her and she responded to standard treatment fine and has showed no signs since.

Fine, random azoturia attack - however bloods taken at the time and taken later show none of the standard clinic indications that she tied up? In fact the vet said from the results from both bloods taken there was no way she tied up. Anyone know of anything that produces the same clinical signs?! Or should I just take it as one of those things?!

Sorry for the mini essay!
 
sounds more like EPSM if the bloods are normal. My old horse was on a low starch diet but still suffered from it. He needed the extra oil as well as a low starch diet
 
katemiddleton said:
Slightly confusing...
Team chasing last year, my mare jumps a lovely quick clear round quite a challenging course, really pleased with her, however after crossing line I did my usual jump off and lead her round and noticed after the first lap she did a couple of short steps, she then proceeded to perform a perfect "text book" episode of quite severe acute azoturia. She was 19, fully fit, hunting and team chasing each week, and had never showed any signs before (I've owned her 16 years). No diet, exercise or yard changes, drinking as normal and warmed up and competed fine. She's also on what could be considered an azoturia-preventing diet anyway as well as starch high diets and similar blow her brains!

Vet on course treated her and she responded to standard treatment fine and has showed no signs since.

Fine, random azoturia attack - however bloods taken at the time and taken later show none of the standard clinic indications that she tied up? In fact the vet said from the results from both bloods taken there was no way she tied up. Anyone know of anything that produces the same clinical signs?! Or should I just take it as one of those things?!

Sorry for the mini essay!
Click to expand...

Same as soulfull - I was going to say EPSM too. A friends horse suffered from it. Oil is meant to be extremely beneficial for this problem.
 
Sounds like it could be - the diet she is on is geared towards preventing it already which is good, she's mainly on forage with low starch/grain nuts, and plenty of additional oil added. As well as blowing her brain high starch/grain diet produces quite a significant covering of urticaria so have always avoided it! Am lucky it hasn't happened again, but it does make it tricky figuring out what happened!
 
Firstly I am NO expert on this but there are some enquiries being made regarding PSSM (Polysaccharide Storage Myopathy or EPSM Equine Polysaccharide Storage Myopathy) with American breeds. There is a test with Animal Genetics in Truro Cornwall to find out if this is what it is - simply supply them with rooted tail hair. Alternatively your vet can do a muscle biopsy, which IS intrusive. From what I understand, tissue samples are taken from either side of the tail.

Animal Genetics' details are often displayed in the boxed section at the top of this forum page.

A description of a horse with PSSM (tested positive) the horse had blood tests which revealed CK and AST enzyme levels off the scale.

Don't know if that helps but no doubt I will be corrected by someone. Good luck.
 
While I am not a vet,my understanding is that whether you call it PSSM,EPSM or azoturia, a blood test ,even up to two weeks after the episode will show a massive spike in the creatine phosphatase level. This is a normal thing to test for and if the result was normal ,cross all these (identical) ailments off your list. My suspicion would be on cramp in the muscles induced by Oxalates from anaerobic respiration, and exacerbated by loss of electrolytes. Was the weather hot?
 
It won't necessarily show i the bloods.

My boy (the bright bay in my siggy) has Recurrent Exertional Rhabdomyolysis...but none of the bloods showed any spike in CK enzymes, raised yes, but not hugely.

A muscle biopsy gave us the diagnosis of RER...but even then it took a second opinion to find it.
 
Whilst I am impressed with Dr,s Valberg and Valentines (separate )work on the subject I am not entirely convinced.AS Tar Steps often says"if you hear hooves behind you ,dont expect zebra"My first instinct is to check all the normal training problems experienced in racing. I would also doubt that what is described as sounding like a full blown Azoturia episode (call it what you like) would not show up in a blood test. But as I said ,I am not a vet.
 
Mike007 said:
Whilst I am impressed with Dr,s Valberg and Valentines (separate )work on the subject I am not entirely convinced.AS Tar Steps often says"if you hear hooves behind you ,dont expect zebra"My first instinct is to check all the normal training problems experienced in racing. I would also doubt that what is described as sounding like a full blown Azoturia episode (call it what you like) would not show up in a blood test. But as I said ,I am not a vet.
Click to expand...

For some reason EPSM does not show up in blood tests. HOWEVER I see your point about an episode that bad, you would have thought that would.

But if it is not the same chemistry that causes similar symptoms then that may explain it.

my own lad had several sets of bloods done and nothing showed AT ALL However his biopsy was positive for EPSM

The biopsy is a little invasive but not that bad, certainly didn't cause him any problems. It did leave a tiny scar on one side of his tail but hardly noticeable
 
Just as a complete outside, my mare had what appeared to be azortoria but again blood levels didnt really stack up and had reverted to normal within a couple of days - she suffered badly with hormones and was constantly in season, we put it down in the end to ovary pain. I was telling someone whose eventer regularly appeared to tie up about this and they put theirs on regumate and it has not happened to their mare again since.
 
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