Search Results

Abstract

Objective—To determine history; clinical, radiographic, ultrasonographic, and scintigraphic abnormalities; treatment; and outcome in horses with tuber coxae fractures and to describe a useful technique for obtaining a dorsomedial-ventrolateral 50° oblique radiographic view of the tuber coxa of the ilium in standing horses.

Design—Retrospective case series.

Animals—29 horses with fractures of tuber coxa.

Procedures—Data collected from medical records included signalment; history; horse use; severity and duration of lameness; radiographic, ultrasonographic, and scintigraphic findings; treatment; and outcome.

Results—All horses had a traumatic event leading to acute, unilateral hind limb lameness. Eighteen horses had a more severe lameness at the walk than at the trot; 22 of 29 horses had an abnormal gait with the hind limbs tracking to 1 side of the forelimbs. Twenty-four of 29 horses had palpable and visual asymmetry between the affected and unaffected tuber coxae. Twenty horses had radiography performed while sedated but standing, and fractures were reliably identified on the dorsomedial-ventrolateral 50° oblique radiographic views. Twenty-seven (27/29 [93%]) horses returned to athletic use. Horses sustaining partial fractures of the caudal aspect of tuber coxae returned to previous use significantly earlier (mean, 3 months), compared with horses with complete tuber coxae fractures (6.5 months).

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Horses with tuber coxae fractures returned to athletic soundness following extended periods of rest. Findings emphasized the need for obtaining a dorsomedial-ventrolateral 50° oblique radiographic view of the tuber coxa of the ilium in horses suspected of sustaining injury to this region.

Abstract

Objective—To determine history, clinical and radiographic abnormalities, and outcome in horses with signs of navicular area pain unresponsive to corrective shoeing and systemic nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug administration that were treated with an injection of corticosteroids, sodium hyaluronate, and amikacin into the navicular bursa.

Design—Retrospective study.

Animals—25 horses.

Procedure—Data collected from the medical records included signalment, history, horse use, severity and duration of lameness, shoeing regimen, results of diagnostic anesthesia, radiographic abnormalities, and outcome.

Results—17 horses had bilateral forelimb lameness, 7 had unilateral forelimb lameness, and 1 had unilateral hind limb lameness. Mean duration of lameness was 9.2 months. All horses had been treated with corrective shoeing and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for at least 6 months; 18 had previously been treated by injection of corticosteroids and sodium hyaluronate into the distal interphalangeal joint. Fourteen horses had mismatched front feet, and 21 horses had signs of pain in response to application of pressure over the central aspect of the frog. Palmar digital nerve anesthesia resulted in substantial improvement in or resolution of the lameness in all horses. Twenty horses (80%) were sound and returned to intended activities 2 weeks after navicular bursa treatment; mean duration of soundness was 4.6 months. Two horses that received numerous navicular bursa injections had a rupture of the deep digital flexor tendon at the level of the pastern region.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Results suggest that navicular bursa treatment may provide temporary improvement in horses with signs of chronic navicular area pain that fail to respond to other treatments. (J Am Vet Med Assoc 2003;223:1469–1474)

Abstract

Objective—To determine clinical history, structures involved, treatment, and outcome of lacerations of the heel bulb and proximal phalangeal region (pastern) in horses.

Design—Retrospective study.

Animals—101 horses.

Procedures—Medical records of horses with lacerations of the heel bulb and pastern were reviewed, and follow-up information was obtained.

Results—75 horses were Quarter Horses. Most horses were not treated with antimicrobial drugs prior to referral. Mean ± SD time from injury to referral was 24 ± 45 hours (range, 1 to 168 hours). Lacerations were most frequently caused by contact with wire or metal objects. In 17 horses, lacerations involved synovial structures; the distal interphalangeal joint was most commonly affected. One horse was euthanatized after initial examination. Wound treatment consisted of cleansing, lavage, debridement, lavage of affected synovial structures, suturing of fresh wounds, and application of a foot bandage or cast. Fifty-six horses were treated with systemically administered antimicrobial drugs. Follow-up information was collected for 61 horses. Fifty-one horses returned to their intended use and had no further complications; 10 horses had complications associated with the wound, and of those horses, 5 were euthanatized and 1 horse died from an unrelated cause. Horses with lacerations that involved synovial structures had worse outcomes than horses with lacerations that did not involve synovial structures.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Horses that sustain heel bulb lacerations can successfully return to their intended use. Involvement of the distal interphalangeal joint is associated with poor prognosis. (J Am Vet Med Assoc 2005;226:418–423)

Abstract

Case Description—4 horses with enthesopathy and desmitis of the medial collateral ligament of the cubital joint were examined.

Clinical Findings—All 4 horses had a history of acute, severe, unilateral forelimb lameness and had signs of pain during manipulation of the affected upper forelimb; 2 also had swelling in the axillary region. There was no improvement in lameness after diagnostic local analgesia below the carpal region, and 1 of 4 horses had mild improvement after cubital joint analgesia. Radiography revealed enthesophyte formation on the radial tuberosity and linear mineralization of the medial collateral ligament in 2 horses and periosteal reaction on the humeral condyle in all 4 horses. One horse had mild osteoarthritis of the cubital joint, and 3 had osteophytosis of the cranial aspect of the radius. Although all horses were initially examined because of an acute onset of lameness, all had chronic abnormalities visible on imaging. Ultrasonography revealed an irregular boney contour and enthesopathy at the insertion of the short medial collateral ligament to the radial tuberosity and desmitis of the short medial collateral ligament. Two horses had radiographic evidence of similar but less severe lesions of the contralateral cubital joint.

Treatment and Outcome—All horses received phenylbutazone and rest. All horses were free of lameness after a median of 3 months (range, 2 to 4 months) and returned to previous use after a median of 6 months (range, 3 to 8 months).

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—The results of the present report suggested that performance horses with enthesopathy and desmitis of the medial collateral ligament of the cubital joint may have a good prognosis for return to previous use following appropriate treatment.

Abstract

Objective—To determine whether intraluminal distention and subsequent decompression of the equine jejunum affects intestinal blood flow, hemodynamics, and microvascular permeability.

Animals—5 healthy adult horses.

Procedure—Horses were anesthestized and underwent exploratory laparotomy. Two jejunal segments were identified as sham-operated or instrumented segments. After baseline values were obtained, intraluminal distention was created in the experimental segment to induce an intraluminal pressure of 18 cm H₂O. After 120 minutes of distention, the intestine was decompressed for 120 minutes. Mesenteric blood flow, oxygen delivery, oxygen consumption, microvascular permeability, wet weight-to-dry weight ratio, neutrophil infiltration, and vascular resistance were determined and comparisons made among control, sham-operated, and experimental segments.

Results—Mean jejunal blood flow was 21.4 ml/min per kg. There was a significant decrease in mesenteric blood flow to the distended intestine (13.4 ml/min per kg). Blood flow increased significantly during the decompression period (340% of baseline blood flow). Intraluminal distention and subsequent decompression resulted in a significant increase in microvascular permeability, as determined by the osmotic reflection coefficient. Oxygen delivery and oxygen content decreased significantly during the distention period and increased during decompression. Morphologic evaluation revealed a significant increase in edema and neutrophil infiltration after distention and decompression, compared with results for the sham-operated or control segments.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Intraluminal distention and decompression of the equine jejunum results in low-flow ischemia and edema, which may contribute to adhesions and ileus in the postoperative period after surgery for obstructions of the small intestines. (Am J Vet Res 2001;62:225–236)

Abstract

OBJECTIVE To describe the chief complaints by owners and the types and prevalences of musculoskeletal problems associated with lameness or poor performance in cutting horses.

DESIGN Retrospective case series.

ANIMALS 200 client-owned cutting horses examined at the Texas A&M University Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital between January 1, 2007, and December 31, 2015, because of lameness or poor performance.

PROCEDURES Medical records were reviewed, and data were collected regarding signalment, history, findings on physical and lameness examinations, results of diagnostic procedures performed, diagnosis, and treatment. Distribution of observed proportions of forelimb and hind limb involvement was compared with a hypothetical distribution of 50% by means of a χ² test.

RESULTS More horses were examined because of a recent decrease in performance (116/200 [58%]) than for lameness (84 [42%]). All horses had at least 1 lame limb, with lameness affecting a total of 281 limbs. Of the 281 lame limbs, 189 (67%) were hind limbs and 92 (33%) were forelimbs. These proportions were substantially different from a hypothetical distribution of 50% hind limbs and 50% forelimbs. The most common performance change was that horses would not reverse direction to follow prespecified individual cattle, and the most common cause of lameness was pain localized to the stifle joint region (69 [35%]).

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Cutting horses sustained more hind limb than forelimb musculoskeletal problems, and although these horses were more likely to be examined for decreased performance than lameness, veterinarians should be vigilant for problems affecting the stifle joint region.

Abstract

Objective—To determine clinical signs, ultrasonographic findings, and outcome of horses with tendinitis of the proximal portion of the superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT; group A horses) and to compare signalment, horse use, and outcome in these horses with that of horses with tendinitis of the midmetacarpal region of the SDFT (group B horses).

Design—Retrospective case series.

Animals—12 group A horses and 22 group B horses.

Procedures—Medical records were reviewed for signalment, horse use, and outcome information; data for group A horses also included severity of lameness, diagnostic results, and treatment.

Results—Most group A horses were aged (mean, 18 years; median, 17 years; range, 11 to 23 years) Quarter Horses (9/12 horses) and had a grade 3 or 4 (on a scale from 1 to 5) forelimb lameness. Most group A horses (8/12 horses) had positive reactions to carpal flexion and were (9/12 horses) sound following ulnar nerve blocks. Ultrasonographic evaluation revealed hypoechoic SDFT lesions (median echogenicity score, 3/4; median fiber alignment score, 3/3; and mean length, 9.75 cm). Group A horses were significantly older and had a poorer outcome for return to previous use (2/12 horses), compared with group B horses (median age, 5 years; 10/22 horses returned to previous use). Thirteen of 22 group B horses were Thoroughbreds.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Tendinitis of the proximal portion of the SDFT was a cause of lameness in aged performance horses; prognosis for return to previous use was poor.

Abstract

Objective—To determine clinical, radiographic, and scintigraphic abnormalities in and outcome of horses with septic or nonseptic osteitis of the axial border of the proximal sesamoid bones.

Design—Retrospective study.

Animals—8 horses.

Procedure—Data collected from medical records included signalment; history; horse use; severity and duration of lameness; results of perineural anesthesia, radiography, ultrasonography, and scintigraphy; and outcome following surgery.

Results—Five horses did not have any evidence of sepsis; the other 3 had sepsis of the metacarpophalangeal or metatarsophalangeal joint or the digital synovial sheath. All horses had a history of chronic unilateral lameness. Three of 5 horses improved after diagnostic anesthesia of the metacarpophalangeal or metatarsophalangeal joint; the other 2 improved only after diagnostic anesthesia of the digital synovial sheath. Nuclear scintigraphy was beneficial in localizing the source of the lameness to the proximal sesamoid bones in 4 horses. Arthroscopy of the palmar or plantar pouch of the joint or of the digital synovial sheath revealed intersesamoidean ligament damage and osteomalacia of the axial border of the proximal sesamoid bones in all horses. All 5 horses without sepsis and 1 horse with sepsis returned to their previous uses.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Results suggest that osteitis of the axial border of the proximal sesamoid bones is a distinct entity in horses that typically is associated with inflammation of the associated metacarpointersesamoidean or metatarsointersesamoidean ligament and may be a result of sepsis or nonseptic inflammation. Arthroscopic debridement may allow horses without evidence of sepsis to return to their previous level of performance. (J Am Vet Med Assoc 2001;219:82–86)

Abstract

Objective—To evaluate effects of Carolina rinse solution, dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), and 21-aminosteroid, U-74389G, on microvascular permeability and morphology of the equine jejunum after low-flow ischemia and reperfusion.

Animals—20 healthy adult horses.

Procedure—Under anesthesia, full-thickness biopsy specimens of a distal portion of the jejunum were obtained for baseline measurements. In addition to a control segment, 2 jejunal segments were identified as sham-operated or experimental segments. Experimental segments underwent 60 minutes of low-flow ischemia and 3.5 hours of reperfusion. Treatments were as follows: U-74389G (3 mg/kg, IV; 6 horses), DMSO (20 mg/kg, IV; 6) diluted in 1 L of saline (0.9% NaCl) solution, local perfusion (via jejunal artery) of Carolina rinse solution (0.5 mL/kg; 4), and local perfusion of lactated Ringer's solution (0.5 mL/kg; 4).

Results—Jejunal microvascular permeability was significantly lower after treatment with Carolina rinse solution or DMSO, compared with U-74389G or lactated Ringer's solution treatments. After DMSO treatment, serosal- and submucosal-layer edema was significantly increased in experimental segments, compared with control or sham-operated segments; however, edema increases were significantly less than for lactated Ringer's solution or U-74389G treatments. Significant decreases in intestinal wet weight-to-dry weight ratio were found following Carolina rinse solution or DMSO treatments, compared with lactated Ringer's solution or U-74389G treatments. Edema formation and leukocyte infiltration in jejunal segments of horses treated with lactated Ringer's solution or U-74389G were increased, compared with Carolina rinse solution or DMSO treatments.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Carolina rinse solution and DMSO may be protective against ischemia-reperfusion injury in the equine jejunum. (Am J Vet Res 2005;66:525–536)