Every so often, equine surgeons take a look back at all the colic surgeries they have performed over the years in an effort to answer some important questions. If a horse undergoes colic surgery, for example, what are the chances that horse will survive? If a horse survives surgery, what are the odds of complications in the days and weeks afterward?

Complications are particularly frustrating to equine surgeons. It is very hard to help a horse come through a difficult colic surgery, only to see it succumb in the postoperative period. One of the worst of these complications that can kill horses is called postoperative ileus (lack of gut motility). Scientists aren’t exactly sure what causes it, or why one horse will recover from surgery while another will develop ileus following the same surgical procedure. One thing is certain: A lot of research is being done in an effort to better understand and manage this deadly complication of colic surgery.

Intestinal Physiology

When a veterinarian places his stethoscope on a horse’s flank at any time of the day or night, he hears a variety of gut sounds. These are the sounds of intestinal movement, which, unlike the case in humans, are unrelated to meal time in horses. In the natural state, horses graze almost continuously. The equine gut, therefore, is designed to process and digest food continually. Beneficial microbes are located throughout the intestine and aid in digestion. They allow the horse to gain the most nutritional benefit from a forage-based diet. These microbes also release gases, which are passed along the intestine and released along with the feces