Dystocia in the Standardbred Mare: A Retrospective Study from 2004 to 2020

Abstract

Dystocia as a prolonged stage II parturition (>30 min) was associated with a higher risk of complications. The hypothesis of the study was that any type of dystocia could affect the foal’s health, even when the stage II was <30 min. Clinical reports on 222 Standardbred mares and their foals hospitalized at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of the University of Bologna from 2004 to 2020 were reviewed. Mares were divided into the Eutocia Group (165, eutocic delivery) and the Dystocia Group (57, dystocic delivery). The incidence of dystocia was 4.9%. Stage II was longer in the Dystocia Group (median 20 min) than in the Eutocia Group (median 12 min). All occurrences of dystocia were retrospectively classified into three categories of severity: mild, moderate and severe dystocia. The occurrence of postpartum complications in mares and neonatal diseases and failure of passive transfer of immunity in foals was higher in the Dystocia Group. Foal venous lactatemia and serum creatine kinase were significantly higher in the Dystocia Group (median 3.9 mmol/L; 262 UI/L respectively) than in the Eutocia Group (median 3.1 mmol/L; 187 UI/L respectively). The APGAR score was lower in the Dystocia Group (median 8) than in the Eutocia Group (median 10) and significantly lower in severe dystocia (median 3). The duration of stage II should not be considered the only parameter of dystocia in mares: even a rapid resolution of dystocia could pose health risks to the foal and the mare.

Dystocia frequency and causes in horses with pregnancy disorders or a history of dystocia: A prospective study

“…Across the groups, 20% (4 out of 20) of the foals delivered under dystocic conditions did not survive. Lanci et al (2022) survive dystocia. In the current study, the rate was slightly lower at 5% (1 out of 20).…”

“…Lanci et al (2022) provided a somewhat comparable investigation into the association between pregnancy disorders and an increased risk of dystocia in horses, akin to the mares of Group 1 of this study. Lanci et al's (2022) study retrospectively examined data TA B L E 2 TA B L E 3 Incidence of parturition complications in 19 cases of dystocia.…”

Normal, Induced and Difficult Parturitions in Equines – A Review

“…Since equine gestation lengths vary widely, it is unlikely that planned inducement of parturition on a particular day of pregnancy will give birth to a live foal very often. The prevalence of dystocia in mare varies from 4 to 11% (Ginther and Williams 1996;Lanci et al 2022). According to Lanci et al (2022), all occurrences of dystocia were retrospectively classified into three Open Access Journal Ashraf R, Sanawar S, Rashid S, Iftikhar HF, Jamil F and Jamil A, 2022.…”

“…The prevalence of dystocia in mare varies from 4 to 11% (Ginther and Williams 1996;Lanci et al 2022). According to Lanci et al (2022), all occurrences of dystocia were retrospectively classified into three Open Access Journal Ashraf R, Sanawar S, Rashid S, Iftikhar HF, Jamil F and Jamil A, 2022. Normal, induced and difficult parturitions in equines -A review.…”

Bladder prolapse with simultaneous entrapment of a portion of the descending colon through the urethral sphincter secondary to dystocia in a mare

“…The most common foetal cause is malposition of extremities which accounts for 41% of equine dystocia cases (Ginther & Williams, 1996). The most frequent maternal causes of dystocia are primary uterine inertia and incomplete dilation of the birth canal (Lanci et al, 2022). The primary indication for caesarean section in mares is dystocia with a live fetus, where assisted vaginal delivery (AVD) and/or controlled vaginal delivery (CVD) are not possible (Embertson, 2002).…”