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Archive Case #164: Equine Keratomycosis

Horse veterinary case - Hard - August 14, 2026

Clinical Clues

  1. At a corneal-ulcer recheck, a horse's eye is worse despite treatment.
  2. Pain is increasing, and the cloudy corneal focus has become raised and irregular.
  3. Examination reveals a deep corneal lesion with a yellow-white plaque and surrounding oedema.
  4. The cornea has a rough infiltrated appearance rather than a simple superficial ulcer.
  5. Cytology from the lesion supports fungal invasion of the corneal stroma.
  6. Fungal infection of the equine cornea is an important complication of corneal injury.

Diagnosis

Equine Keratomycosis

This case is most consistent with Equine Keratomycosis because the horse has a worsening corneal lesion with stromal plaque formation and cytology supportive of fungal invasion. The most important clues are the raised infiltrated plaque and failed response to simple ulcer therapy, which make uncomplicated corneal ulceration less likely.

Learning review

Review the case evidence

Use the paired clues to explain how the evidence in this horse case supports the provided diagnosis, Equine Keratomycosis, then compare your reasoning with the case explanation.

Evidence checkpoints

Clues 1-2

  1. Clue 1: At a corneal-ulcer recheck, a horse's eye is worse despite treatment.
  2. Clue 2: Pain is increasing, and the cloudy corneal focus has become raised and irregular.

Clues 3-4

  1. Clue 3: Examination reveals a deep corneal lesion with a yellow-white plaque and surrounding oedema.
  2. Clue 4: The cornea has a rough infiltrated appearance rather than a simple superficial ulcer.

Clues 5-6

  1. Clue 5: Cytology from the lesion supports fungal invasion of the corneal stroma.
  2. Clue 6: Fungal infection of the equine cornea is an important complication of corneal injury.

Self-review prompts

  1. After clues 1-2, what evidence from this horse case shaped your initial interpretation?
  2. When you compare clues 3-4 with clues 1-2, what changed in your reasoning about Equine Keratomycosis?
  3. How do clues 5-6 align with the case explanation for Equine Keratomycosis?

Educational Use

Vetdle archive cases are educational veterinary games for diagnostic reasoning practice. They do not provide veterinary advice, diagnosis, treatment, or professional medical guidance.