Endoscopy

Endoscopy has been utilized for many years to evaluate the upper airway in horses.  We have a small 8 mm external diameter upper airway endoscope that we utilize to evaluate this region in horses.  The small diameter of this endoscope assures that we can access this region in even the smallest pony or foal without too much discomfort to the patient.

A specialized 3-meter length gastroscope is used to image the stomach of the horse to diagnose equine gastric ulcer syndrome and occasionally a foreign object or gastric tumor.  The additional length is necessary to reach the equine stomach and to be able to image all regions of the upper duodenum and pyloris.  When a gastroscope is schedule, Dr. Polke brings her own 3-meter gastroscope to perform these examinations.