For any medical problem your horse may have the first and most important diagnostic is a  thorough physical examination. The veterinarians at Old Waterloo Equine Clinic make this an important part of every visit.  The results of the physical examination are used to diagnose and determine the steps needed for treatment.  

   We have a wide variety of diagnostic equipment that is mobile, so we can do further diagnosis on the farm. Sometimes more specialized equipment is needed, and the horse needs to be brought to our clinic.

Some of our advanced diagnostic services include:

Endoscopic evaluation  

• The endoscope is a flexible light tube which can be passed down the nose and trachea to view the upper respiratory system and lower airways looking for abnormalities, infection and inflammation.  
• It can be passed into the stomach to observe gastric ulcers and other diseases of the stomach.
• The endoscope can also be passed into the urinary bladder to detect stones, infection.

• The ultrasound works like radar sending sound waves through the body and detecting the waves that bounce back off various tissues.  The waves do not go through bone, so this system is used for soft tissue, organs and the surface of bones.  
• The ultrsound is used for detecting infection and inflammation in internal organs such as liver, lungs, and gastrointestinal system.  
• We also use ultrasound to determine the cause of lumps and swellings which might be abscesses, abnormal lymph nodes, or cancers.

• A biopsy removes suspect tissue for further laboratory evaluation to diagnose inflammatory or infectious processes and types of cancers.
• Abdominocentesis  removes fluid from the abdominal cavity by needle puncture to determine possible causes and severity of diseases..
  
• Spinal taps are used to obtain cerebrospinal fluid for confirmation of diseases such as EPM

• Blood samples are taken for testing to evaluate organ function, and identify infectious and non-infectious diseases.
• Other fluids such as joint fluid can also be evaluated for inflammation and infection.
• Cultures to check for bacterial growth, identification and sensitivity to antibiotics can be done on many kinds of samples taken from all areas of the body.