Gastritis, Haemorrhagic

Clinical

• Usually only seen post mortem.
• Stomach full of thick tarry clots.
• Occasionally will vomit blood in life.

Pathology

Haemorrhagic gastritis (Courtesy of BioMed Image Archive)

Gross

• Wall of stomach is blacked and ulcerated.
  • Red, thickened, necrotic, haemorrhagic mucosa.

Histologically

• Coagulative necrosis with fibrin, oedema, haemorrhage, and sometimes emphysema.
• May extend deep into submucosa/muscle.

Pathogenesis

• There are several causes of haemorrhagic gastritis
  1. Aspirin and non-steroidal anti inflammatory drug toxicity.
  2. Peracute / acute infections, e.g.
     • Swine Fever
     • Anthrax
     • Leptospirosis in dogs (Leptospira icterohaemorrhagiae).
  3. Clostridial disease
     • e.g. Braxy (Clostridium septicum)
       • Affects older lambs or yearlings producing sudden death.
       • Usually seen on sheep grazing on frosted grass so more common in colder areas.
       • Bacterial exotoxin causes acute abomasitis.
       • Pathology- At post mortem the stomach is grossly distended with partially clotted blood. The wall of the stomach is thickened,reddened and oedematous.
       • Diagnosed by isolation of organism from the stomach wall.
       • Is now usually vaccinated against (Heptovac 7 in 1 clostridial vaccine).
  4. Anticoagulant Rodenticide Toxicity.