Aspectos clínicos e epidemiológicos da intoxicação por Crotalaria retusa (Fabaceae) em equinos atendidos no Hospital Veterinário da UFCG.

Abstract

In Brazil’s northeastern semi-arid there is a great intoxication incidence in horses due to the ingestion of toxic plants. An important example is the intoxication by Crotalaria retusa that causes acute and chronic hepatic lesions provoking clinical signs of hepatic encephalopathy and death. A retrospective study was conducted with the cases with C. retusa intoxication in equines that were admitted in the Veterinary Hospital between 2004 and 2007. Twelve C. retusa intoxication cases in equines were identified. Six of those animals were discharged from the hospital and the other 6 died, undergoing necropsy in the Animal Pathology Laboratory. The clinical findings were characterized mainly by anorexia, confusion, general physical indisposition, irritability, yawning, muscular spasms, incoordination, low head positioning, aggressivity, walking or even galloping without direction and pressing the head against obstacles. The main modification in the necropsy results were in the liver demonstrating variable degrees of red areas intermixed with yellow ones, which characterized chronic hepatopathy that is the main alteration in this intoxication. Comparing the results found in this research with the findings in other conducted studies with equines, 2.35% of the animal cases in the Veterinary Hospital were due to C. retusa intoxication and 50% of the animals died still in the hospital and one of the animals after hospital discharge. As to the other discharged animals, it wasn’t possible to keep a follow-up program.