E&e Equine Clinical Pathology

Front 1

What are the 2 main ways to measure changes in plasma volume?

Back 1

PCV
Proteins

Front 2

What will a dehydrated animals PCV and proteins look like?

Back 2

Increased PCV
Increased proteins

Front 3

Stress increases what?

Back 3

Glucose
RBC
WBC

Front 4

Changes in Na normally reflect what?

Back 4

Changes in water balance

Front 5

Causes of hyponatraemia?

Back 5

Sweating
Diarrhoea (usu isotonic but if drinking cld be water excess and hypoNa)
Blood loss
Gastric reflux

Front 6

Causes of hyperNa?

Back 6

Water deprivation
Some diarrhoea cases
DI

Front 7

Where is the majority of K?

Back 7

Intracellular and difficult to measure; look at urine output...decreased output may mean that horse is conserving it

Front 8

Causes of hypo-K?

Back 8

Altered externally - depleted K stores from diarrhoea, diet deficiency

Altered internally - mvt from ECF to ICF; metabolic alkalosis, bicarb admin

Front 9

Causes of hyper-K?

Back 9

Hypovolaemia (ARF)
Metabolic acidosis

Front 10

What is change in serum Cl usually associated with?

Back 10

Alterations in serum Na as a result of changes in water balance (again, diarrhoea, sweating, blood loss and reflux)

Front 11

When change in Cl is NOT assd with Na, what else could have an assn?

Back 11

Cl tends to vary inversely with bicarb; increase in Cl relative to Na assd with met acidosis (less bicarb); decrease in Cl relative to Na assd with met alkalosis, prolonged sweating (increased bicarb)

Front 12

How is calcium maintained?

Back 12

Intestinal absorption
Renal excretion
Mobilisation from bones

Front 13

How is total serum Ca broken down?

Back 13

Ionised (active form) - 40-50%
Complexed 2-5%
Protein-bound - 40-50%

Front 14

Causes of hypocalcaemia

Back 14

ARF (initially)
Exhaustion
Transit
Periparturient/Lactation

Front 15

Causes of hyperCa?

Back 15

CRF
Hyper-PT
Hyper-Vit D

Front 16

Causes of metabolic acidosis?

Back 16

Hypovolaemia
Acute colitis
Bowel strangulation
High levels of exercise

Lactate increases with hypoV and bicarb is the first thing that is given up

Front 17

What is a metabolic acidosis assd with?

Back 17

Decreased pH
Increased H+
Decreased HCO3

AND decreased PCO2 from rapid deep breathing

Front 18

Causes of metabolic alkalosis?

Back 18

Gastric reflux
Sweating
Salivation

Leads to loss of Na and Cl (MOSTLY Cl)

Front 19

What is a metabolic alkalosis assd with?

Back 19

Increased pH
Decreased H+
Increased HCO3
Increased PCO2

Front 20

What is a respiratory acidosis assd with?

Back 20

Decreased pH
Increased H+
Increased PCO2

Eventual increased HCO3

Front 21

Causes of respiratory alkalosis?

Back 21

Hyperventilation (fear, pain, excitement)

Front 22

What is resp alkalosis assd with?

Back 22

Increased pH
Decreased H+
Decreased PCO2
Decreased HCO3

Front 23

Anion gap is a approx of what?

Back 23

Unmeasured anions - proteins, sulphate, phosphate, lactate

Front 24

Causes of an increased anion gap?

Back 24

Lactic acidosis from anaerobic exercise, grain overload, hypovolaemia

Front 25

What else is the AG a good measure of?

Back 25

Lactate concentration

Front 26

What are some serum enzymes that are measured in horses?

Back 26

GLDH
GGT
AST
AP
CK

Front 27

Where is GLDH derived from?

Back 27

Liver and is specific

Front 28

What does an increased GLDH mean?

Back 28

Hepatocellular damage or biliary status

Front 29

What is GGT a marker of?

Back 29

Hepatobiliary disorders and cholestasis with highest activity in periportal liver, pancreas and renal tubular cells

Front 30

What has the longer t 1/2 - GLDH or GGT?

Back 30

GGT

Front 31

Where is AST concentrated?

Back 31

Skeletal and cardiac muscle
Liver
Kidney
RBCs

Front 32

Is AST specific?

Back 32

No it is a non-specific indicator of tissue damage (vs. CK for muscle and GLDH for liver)

Front 33

What is AP a marker of?

Back 33

Intra or extrahepatic obstruction of the biliary sysem

Front 34

Is AP specific?

Back 34

No it is also released from bone (osteoblastic metabolically active bone), intestine and neutrophils

Front 35

Is CK specific?

Back 35

Yes a specific indicator of skeletal muscle damage

Front 36

What sorts of things may increase CK?

Back 36

IM injection by 4x
Recumbency by 4x
ER (thousands)

Front 37

What else is CK usually evaluated with the monitor chronicity of skeletal muscle damage?

Back 37

Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)
AST

Front 38

What does bilirubin increase with?

Back 38

Liver disease
Haemolysis
Anorexia

Front 39

What causes hypoglycaemia?

Back 39

Fasting
Septicaemia
Endotoxaemia
Hyperlipaemia (NEB)

Front 40

What causes hyperglycaemia?

Back 40

Stress
Excitement
Endotoxaemia INITIALL
Cushings

Front 41

Elevations in creatinine indicate what?

Back 41

Prerenal azotaemia (hypoV)
Renal azotaemia
Post-renal azotaemia (urolithiasis, bladder rupture)

Front 42

Name 2 acute phase proteins

Back 42

Fibrinogen
Serum amyloid A

Front 43

What causes hypoalbuminaemia?

Back 43

Decreased production (liver dsease)
Increased breakdown (more metab demands, chronic antigen stimulus)
Increased loss (GIT, renal)
Acute blood loss (hypoglobulins too)

Front 44

What causes anaemia?

Back 44

Blood loss
Increased RBC destruction
Inadequate RBC production (marrow suppressed)

Front 45

What is MCV?

Back 45

Mean cell volume and an increase suggests regenerative (larger immature RBCs...dont get reticulocytes); decrease means iron deficiency

Front 46

What is MCHC?

Back 46

Mean cell haemoglobin concentration, increase suggests haemolysis and decrease means iron deficiency

Front 47

Causes of leucocytosis?

Back 47

Neoplasia
Adrenaline-mediated
Inflammation
Steroids (stress)

Front 48

What does neutrophilia indicate?

Back 48

Inflammation
Bacterial infections

Front 49

What is a left shift?

Back 49

Immature neutrophil release into the circulation in face of neutrophilia

Front 50

What can cause neutropaenia?

Back 50

Decreased production
Increased consumption (inflammation)
Increased margination (endotoxaemi)
Some viral diseases (EHV1)

Front 51

Normal USG in horses?

Back 51

1.020 - 1.050

Front 52

Urine pH?

Back 52

7-9, foals acidic

Front 53

What does protein in urine signify?

Back 53

Glomerulonephritis
UTI

Front 54

Causes of glucosuria?

Back 54

Cushings
Glucocorticoids
Adrenaline
Renal tubular damage (BUT will not have hyperglycaemia)

Front 55

Most common crystal in horse urine?

Back 55

Calcium carbonate; this is where the horse gets rid of calcium

Front 56

What is the fractional excretion?

Back 56

Urine elec/serum elec X serum creat/urine creat

Increases of FE indicate renal tubular damage and impaired sodium resorption