Failure of holmium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet laser lithotripsy in two horses with calculi in the urinary bladder

Abstract

A n 8-year-old Hanoverian gelding (horse 1) was referred to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine for evaluation of hematuria and stranguria following exercise. On physical examination, the horse appeared to be in good physical condition; rectal temperature, pulse rate, and respiratory rate were normal. Transrectal palpation and ultrasonography revealed a 6 X 8-cm ovoid cystic calculus. The horse was sedated with detomidine (6 mg, IV) and butorphanol (6 mg, IV) for cystoscopy, which revealed moderate hyperemia and ulceration of the bladder mucosa, along with a yellow plaque that adhered to the bladder mucosa. The cystic calculus was spiculated, greenish-yellow, and freely movable within the bladder lumen.