Indications for and short- and long-term outcome of permanent tracheostomy performed in standing horses: 82 cases (1995-2005).

Objective: To identify indications for and short- and long-term outcome of permanent tracheostomy performed in standing horses.

Design: Retrospective case series.

Animals: 82 horses undergoing permanent tracheostomy.

Procedures: Data obtained from medical records included signalment, diagnosis, surgical technique, complications, use of the horse before and after surgery, and owner satisfaction. Follow-up information was obtained through a telephone questionnaire administered to owners.

Results: Indications for permanent tracheostomy included nasopharyngeal cicatrix (n = 59), arytenoid chondropathy (55), and laryngeal hemiplegia (20); 54 horses had multiple indications for tracheostomy. Complications identified prior to discharge included partial dehiscence (n = 8), transient fever (10), and excessive swelling (13). Complications identified after discharge included partial dehiscence (n = 3), inversion of skin (2), and stenosis of the tracheostomy requiring repair (1). Long-term follow-up information was available for 64 horses. Fifty-seven of the 64 (89%) horses returned to their previous use, and owners of 63 (98%) horses reported being very satisfied with the results. The owner of 1 (2%) horse was unsatisfied with the results. The 1-year survival rate was 97% (95% confidence interval, 95% to 100%). Mean estimated truncated survival time (ie, failure-free period) was 9.7 years (95% confidence interval, 9.3 to 10.1 years).

Conclusions And Clinical Relevance: Results suggested that permanent tracheostomy can be safely performed in standing horses and was a viable treatment for horses with obstructive disease of the upper respiratory tract that was unresponsive to medical treatment or other surgical treatments.