WWYD - nose bleed

[shadesofbay3]

going to try to keep this short-

last year in october my horse had a nose bleed so she had to go the vet to stay overnight and she was scoped and had an x-ray done to rule out a guttural pouch, ethmoid hematoma, etc. she is older, 24, so we wanted to rule things out, and they were able to, at least in the area that they were able to scope (which sounds to be that there could be things going on in areas they couldn’t see?)

this september while i’m at the beach i get a text that there’s another nosebleed. unfortunately i can’t remember now which nostril this was in. mind you were not talking about profuse amounts of blood, but a little trickle.

and now the other day, right nostril again, same thing, a small trickle of blood. after 10 years, im switching vets and the new one was out for the first time today just to meet her. we discussed having the procedure repeated or waiting vs seeing if it happened again and then doing procedure (on the chance that this is just a coincidence)… but what if i wait too long and something bad happens, like a bleed out from a guttural pouch? new vet said it’s unlikely she has developed something over a year but apparently they have the ability to do CT, and you never know what they could have missed (old vet) …

my husband thinks we should wait, im more inclined to do procedure … what would you do??

[Simkie]

I’d scope again. It’s been a year…I’d want another look!

[Paint_Party]

I’ve shared before, in another thread, about caring for a friend’s TB mare that had an ethmoid hematoma.

Believe me, I understand about husbands saying, “Eh, let’s wait a bit.”

But if I were you I would really consider the CT scan. If it’s a hematoma they can bleed a lot, and there’s no way for you to stop the bleeding once it starts. Good news: they can often be surgically removed.

Also, the nosebleed could be something much more benign. So don’t despair!

[Laurierace]

I am a semi reformed scope addict as I used to scope pretty much every horse after a race and sometimes even after they galloped if I suspected something amiss so this would be a no brainer to me. It’s relatively cheap and painless and can save their life potentially.

[shadesofbay3]

thanks everyone. im going to do it. it doesn’t sit right with me not to, and thankfully i have an understanding husband who i told him my thoughts and he just said okay - i guess i wanted feedback that i wasn’t being crazy or overreacting

[shadesofbay3]

update to everyone - radiographs and scope came back almost 100% positive for ethmoid hematoma. waiting for positive confirmation and reading from
surgeon , then scheduling CT. glad i got this done. not sure of what i want to do next, surgery makes me nervous

[2tempe]

If the surgery is frontal flap, I had it done on mare 20 years ago for a sinus issue. As a nearly white gray mare she looked bad while it healed but had no healing issues. Think Frankenstein, lol. Not sure where you are; I went to Ohio State vet school .

[Paint_Party]

@shadesofbay3

radiographs and scope came back almost 100% positive for ethmoid hematoma. waiting for positive confirmation and reading from
surgeon , then scheduling CT. glad i got this done. not sure of what i want to do next, surgery makes me nervous

Surgery would make me nervous, too, but not sure what your other options would be.

That mare we had went through the surgery just fine and the facial scar was minimal after it healed. She was a dark bay, if that matters. She went on to do ammy jumpers for at least a decade before the hematoma returned. I’d think surgical procedures and longer lasting positive outcomes have been developed since then.

I’m glad you had the scoping and imaging done. You’re a good Horse Mom. Keep us updated!