Tag Archives: equine seroma

A GIANT hematoma/seroma presented by Grace Owen, DVM. (What to do when your horse has a huge swelling.)


Wednesday, August 7th, 2019 | Filed under Medical




I follow this vet, Grace Owen, DVM (Edna, Oklahoma),  because she posts interesting and relevant cases.  This one is about a hematoma – a giant serum filled lump – that often appear on horses’ chests and hips… places that get kicked.

Missy Miss had a huge hematoma when she first got here.  Someone kicked her.  I remember sending a pic to my old-tymey vet.  He told me to just wait and it would drain on its own, which it did.

However, I’m not saying you should just sit one out.  If I saw anything this big, I’d be calling the vet instantly.  Holy moly!  The below hematoma is HUGE.  Scary.  So, this is why I’m posting about hematoma/seroma in horses.

This is Grace Owen, DVM. Click image to go to her FB page.

FROM GRACE OWEN, DVM.

Grace Owen, DVM

This is an example of a very large hematoma/seroma. This patient likely got kicked which caused a soft, blood filled swelling. The weight of the swelling continued to stretch the tissue and create a larger swelling. After the bleeding had stopped this seroma was drained and patient was started on antibiotics. This is a fairly dramatic before and after but I’m sure the patient is feeling much better!

A very large hematoma from a suspected kick injury.

The area is left open to drain. Patient will be kept on antibiotics to help reduce the chance of infection.

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