The placental "star" photos for learning purposes...

[Mona]

First is this photo showing the extremely twisted umbilical cord. My vet told me before that it is the most common cause of late term abortions, as the severe tisting cuts off the flow of oxygen to the foal, causing it to die, then Mother Nature takes over, expelling the fetus.

When my mare was aborting today, as is common in most late term abortions, the placenta detaches and the foal and placenta are often delivered together. in a full term pregnancy, this would be considered a "red bag" situation. In this case, part of the placenta came out first and created a big red balloon/ball. I believe the bumps that you can see in these photos are what Becky referred to as the "star" or weak spot in the placenta that breaks to let the foal through in a "normal" birth/delivery. I have never seen anything like it, and was caught off guard, when it suddenly dawned on me that this was likely what Becky spoke of. If not for her recent post, I would have been very concerned upon seeing such a thing! These are the types of things you never see pictures of in text books, so thought it might be valuable to share with others so they too will know what they are looking at, should it ever happen to them.

 

[Miniv]

Mona,

These are valuable photos for many of us. I've seen the twisted cord many times.........BUT not the "star"...... How many of us have witnessed abortions? Our experiences we can count on our hands over the years.

It's also important to examine the placenta itself for any indications of stress or infection.....White marks or very dark marks will show.

Thank you for sharing this.

 

[ruffian]

I had one mare do this to me a few years ago. The cord was twisted like a telephone cord. Mona I am so sorry this happened to you. My vet couldn't say why the cord twisted like that, but we lost the foal but saved the mare.

 

[targetsmom]

I am so sorry about your foal and hope the mare will be fine. And a huge thank you for posting these wonderful pictures!! This forum is just amazing.

 

[Willow Tree Miniatures]

thank you for the pictures, but i am very sorry for your loss. i appreciate you helping "us" in your time of grief.

 

[Connie P]

Very informative. Thank you Mona for sharing these photos and I am so very sorry for your loss.

 

[Reble]

Thanks for sharing Mona, great photos... Sorry again for your loss

 

[minimom1]

How very kind of you to post pictures for our benefit even though it has been a tragic situation for you. I have my one and only foal due this year and I pray all goes well but I have been trying to educate myself for every emergency and this helps immensley.

I have learned so much from all of you on birthing.

Again I am sorry for your loss but THANK YOU for the educational material.

 

[barnbum]

Wow. I've only brought six foals into the world and never knew what the star was all about. Thank you. This is so valuable for all who foal out. Interesting anyway.

 

[HGFarm]

Wow, have never seen anything like that... Sorry Mona that you lost a foal, but I too thank you for sharing these pics.

 

[MBhorses]

so sorry for your lost

thanks for the photos and information

if this would have been a normal birth would it been a red bag delivery or what?

This is the first time i have ever see this.

I am sure this will help others in the future.

i think the forum needs to share photos with information on the forum in case we need to look at it (its only page or something)on the main forum.

 

[~Amanda~]

Thank you for sharing these very educational photos.

I am very sorry for the loss of the foal though.

 

[MiniHGal]

Oh, I am so sorry, Mona! Just sickening to lose them like that.

FYI, as to how these form (and they are totally normal!): A cervical star forms at the cervix, as there is no endometrium to 'connect' the placental villi to--so it is smooth and avillous, unlike the rest of the placenta.

I wonder if your mare also had some placentitis starting at the cervical star--that looks possibly thickened in comparision to a normal intact star to me, tho the color looks ok (which is more important for infections). But pictures can distort things and that may be normal for her; I don't know. But that is also a very common cause of late term abortions.

That is definitely a lot of twists, though I have been told about one study where they attempted to determine how many twists in the cord were, on average, necessary to cause ischemia and death of the foal, and it was about 18 twists or more. Obviously, some would die with less twists.

Thank you for sharing those pictures!

 

[Mona]

Thanks so much to everyone for your input, and a special thanks to MiniHGal for explaining how this start is formed. Maryann(miniv), you mentioned white spots as being a sign of infection. I honestly don't recall seeing anything when I was there, as I was quite nervous about how things would play out, but now looking at these photos I have posted, I do see white spots....are these the type of white spots you are referring to??

 

[Miniv]

Mona, If you laid out the placenta you may notice some very pale spots and/or some very dark dark red ones. These may indicate areas of stress and possible infection. It's nothing necessarily awful, but should be addressed. Having her flushed would probably be recommended by a vet.

Ma---

 

[Mona]

Bumping up for Rabbitsfizz.

 

[Joanne]

Thanks for turning your bad experience into a learning experience for us all.

I agree that it would be great to have a library on LB of threads like this for future reference.

 

[Hosscrazy]

Mona - thank you for posting the photos as they are good for educational purposes. I am so very, very sorry for your loss and hope your mare is doing okay.

Liz R.