23/06/2026
🐎🩺***GASTRIC ULCERS ***🩺 🐎
Can anyone spot the stomach pathology in the photos below? 🤔
This is the stomach of a horse recently gastroscoped at Energy Vets. This patient has diffuse squamous ulcers and pyloric (glandular) ulcers. Read on to find out what this means🐴 🩺
A note on equine stomach anatomy and ulcers:
👉The equine stomach is split into glandular (dark pink) and squamous (pale pink) regions divided by the Margo plicatus
👉Gastric ulcers can occur in either region of the stomach
👉The glandular region naturally sits in stomach acid and produces mucus and bicarbonate that acts as a buffer to stomach acid
👉The squamous region does not sit in acid and has no acid-buffering ability
👉Squamous and Glandular ulcers are caused by different disease processes
👉Management factors, alongside ulcer medications, are often key to aid treatment and prevention of gastric ulcers
So where does gastroscopy come into play?
It is strongly recommended to gastroscope before starting ulcer treatment for many reasons:
🐴 Treatment type and duration vary depending on the type of ulcers present
🐴 Once a diagnosis is obtained, a tailored treatment plan can be made ensuring higher success rates
🐴 Diagnosis allows for better understanding of factors that may have led to ulcer development
The owner of this patient reported a significant improvement within 1 week of starting ulcer medications. The owner was a star at administering ulcer treatment and when we rescoped this patient there was a complete resolution of the ulcers! Their hard work has certainly paid off 👏 👏
This is just one of the many examples of the importance of gastroscopy and the effectiveness in ulcer medications for these cases💊
Did you know less than 10% of equine gastric ulcers will spontaneously resolve without treatment? 🤔
If you wish to chat to our vets about gastric ulcers or organising your horse to be gastroscoped, please give our team a ring today 📞 📞 📞
