The creation of an international audit and database of equine colic surgery: survey of attitudes of surgeons.
Authors: Mair T S, White N A
Journal: Equine veterinary journal
Summary
# Editorial Summary: International Equine Colic Surgery Database – Surgeon Perspectives Despite colic being one of the most common surgical emergencies in equine practice, a conspicuous gap exists in outcome data that would allow surgeons and clinicians to make evidence-based decisions about optimal treatment strategies for different colic presentations. Mair and White surveyed equine surgeons internationally to assess their willingness to participate in and contribute to a proposed multicentre database documenting colic surgical outcomes. Their investigation revealed that surgeon engagement with such a collaborative audit framework would be essential to its viability, with attitudes towards data collection, standardisation, and transparency proving to be key determinants of whether a database could realistically be established and maintained across institutions and countries. The feasibility of generating robust, comparative outcome data—which would ultimately allow farriers, vets, and rehabilitation specialists to provide evidence-based advice to clients regarding prognosis and surgical versus conservative management—depends fundamentally on whether the surgical community views such a project as workable and clinically worthwhile. Understanding and addressing surgeon concerns about participation protocols, time burden, and data governance would be critical steps towards building the evidence base that equine practitioners currently lack when managing colic cases.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Standardized surgical outcome databases are needed to improve evidence-based decision-making for colic cases
- •Surgeon participation and buy-in will be essential for successfully building and maintaining a comprehensive colic surgery registry
- •Collective data collection across multiple centers can help identify best practices for managing different colic types
Key Findings
- •A lack of evidence-based data exists concerning optimum treatments for different types of equine colic
- •Clinical audit cannot currently be applied to equine colic treatment due to insufficient outcome data
- •Surgeon attitudes are a critical factor in determining feasibility of establishing a multicentre colic surgery database