Starry Sky Ultrasound Pattern: A Review

The starry sky pattern is an unusual and dramatic ultrasonographic appearance of the equine liver.
Share
Favorite
Close

No account yet? Register

ADVERTISEMENT

Although one of Vincent van Gogh’s most famous paintings, Starry Night, might have a peaceful and familiar air to it, the starry sky pattern seen on some equine hepatic (liver) ultrasounds is everything but van Gogh. It’s more obscure and less preferred because it often points to a horse health problem.

To help equine practitioners gain a better understanding of this uncommon finding, Kelly Carlson, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, presented a review of this pattern and associated findings at the 2011 American Association of Equine Practitioners convention, held Nov. 18-22 in San Antonio, Texas.

"The starry sky pattern is an unusual and dramatic ultrasonographic appearance of the equine liver characterized by numerous small hyperechoic foci, some of which cast an acoustic shadow," explained Carlson, of Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital, in Lexington, Ky.

In their retrospective review, Carlson and her colleagues aimed to better characterize all aspects of the ultrasonographic pattern. They reviewed the case records and ultrasonographic images of 18 adult horses (of mixed ages and breeds) in which the starry sky pattern was found

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.

Share

Written by:

Erica Larson, former news editor for The Horse, holds a degree in journalism with an external specialty in equine science from Michigan State University in East Lansing. A Massachusetts native, she grew up in the saddle and has dabbled in a variety of disciplines including foxhunting, saddle seat, and mounted games. Currently, Erica competes in eventing with her OTTB, Dorado.

Related Articles

Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with

FREE weekly newsletters from TheHorse.com

Sponsored Content

Weekly Poll

sponsored by:

Where do you primarily feed your horse?
329 votes · 329 answers

Readers’ Most Popular

Sign In

Don’t have an account? Register for a FREE account here.

Need to update your account?

You need to be logged in to fill out this form

Create a free account with TheHorse.com!