Abdominal paracentesis in the field setting for horses with acute abdominal pain

Use of abdominal paracentesis (abdominocentesis) can be an invaluable aid in field assessment of the acute or chronic colic patient and it can be safely performed with application of proper restraint and the appropriate technique. In patients with a clear need for referral for surgical intervention, abdominocentesis may provide helpful prognostic information for the owner, but a balance between time required to perform the procedure and the need for rapid surgical intervention must also be considered. Specific clinical scenarios provide a clear and critical need for abdominal paracentesis in a field setting, including a high suspicion of a strangulating intestinal lesion or a progressive non-strangulating lesion with no option for surgical referral and high suspicion of gastrointestinal rupture. Determination of these diagnoses and the subsequent need for abdominocentesis can be facilitated by a combination of physical examination findings, palpation per rectum and the use of point-of-care diagnostics.