Horse golf ball

Adrien Hespel

Publication Date: 2016-03-06

Details

Service Radiology

Modality: Radiographs

Species: Equine

Area: Head

History

13yo Paint mare, bilateral nasal discharge post being fed hay.

3 images

   
   

Quizz

  1. The well defined round structure ventral to C1 represents:

    Superimposition of structure, likely the halter.
    No, you say that based on the orthogonal projections :)
    A normal physiological structure
    No :)
    The classic appearance for an cutaneous equine osteosarcoma
    No, completely made this one up :)
    A foreign body
    Yes :)

Findings

Ventral to C1, superimposed with the area of the proximal cervical esophagus there is a well defined rounded metallic opaque structure. The diameter of the structure is about 4.2cm (1.7 inches). There is no evidence of fluid line within the frontal sinuses. The remainder of the skull is considered to be within normal limits for the patient's age.

Diagnosis

Esophageal foreign body. Did you guess what the foreign body was ? (answer on the next tab)

Pathology Report

A golf ball was retrieved using endoscopy. The patient recovered fully.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Dr S.Brounts for the endoscopy images.