Common causes of lameness Flashcards
(29 cards)
Equine lameness is always due to
the musculoskeletal system.
e.g. ataxia is neuro not lameness
Beginning your lameness eval - 4 important questions.
Is the horse lame?
What leg is lame?
What is the severity/grade of the lameness?
Is the lameness complicated, aka in more than 1 limb or only under certain circumstances?
Main 6 parts of a lameness evaluation.
history
observation
static musculoskeletal eval
dynamic musculoskeletal eval
flexion test
either diagnostic imaging or diagnostic analgesia
hoof testers are for
“palpation” of the inner structures of the hoof
human fingers simply aren’t strong enough, thus the tool
4 subjective features of dynamic lameness to look for/assess
head bobbing
shortened stride
weight shifting
limping
“down on sound”
flexion tests are divided into what portions
distal and proximal / peripheral vs intraarticular
the test is positive when the flexion exacerbates the lameness, negative when normal or no exacerbation
to detect hind limb lameness from behind the horse, pay attention to the
croup of the horse, the lameness will cause one side of the rump to be higher
why do we detect lameness at a trot and not at a walk or canter?
We use the trot for lameness detection because it’s symmetric, has moments of suspension, and isolates limb loading, making it the best gait to reveal inconsistencies due to pain or injury.
never do a nerve block test in a horse that is
inconsistently lame
how should you test/examine a horse that is inconsistently lame? (2)
make the lameness consistent with hard lunging/trotting in orde to identify it
or
just prescribe rest for the horse to see if that would be sufficient treatment
5 most common cause of lameness in horses
hoof abscess
navicular disease
cellulitis
tendonitis
osteoarthirtis
4 most common causes of hoof abscess
foreign bodies
shoeing issues
trauma
environmental changes (high humidity, constant moisture)
main 3 signs of hoof abscess
lameness
heat
elevated digital pulses
diagnosis of hoof abscess
hoof tester test
sole debridement
you must open up the hoof all the way to the abscess in order to treat it
tx of hoof abscess
poulticing if you can’t drain it mechanically (apply wet bandage to foot until the abscess comes to the surface)
draining by debridement
wrap the hoof until adequate resolution
tetanus protection (given once per year, or immediately after trauma if not vaccinated)
iodine and magnesium sulphate application (the latter attracts fluid)
osteitis =
bone infection
how often do horses hooves need to be shod
every 4- 8 weeks
(4-6 for sport horses; 6 weeks for low level sports horses, 8 weeks for pets, broodmares, leisure animals)
gold standard diagnostic tool for navicular disease?
due to the various soft tissues in the area (bursa, fat pad, tendons etc.) MRI but this just isn’t avail. for horse hooves in most places
desmitis = ligament inflammation
normal palmar angle in horse hooves
The Palmar angle is the angle the bottom of the pedal bone makes with the ground. We are aiming for an angle of 2-4 degrees positive. When we say positive we expect the heel to be higher than the toe. A negative angle will mean that the back of the pedal bone is lower than the toe region.
nb straight parallel is also bad
tx of navicular disease
NSAIDs
* flunixin is potent but not cox selective
* firocoxib is less potent than above but is cox-2 specific
trimming
shoeing (raise the heel up with a shoe-wedge)
local injection
neurectomy (= cutting out the nerve that innervates the foot)
retirement fom sports and work
cellulitis in horses is?
causes?
a serious bacterial infeciton in the skin and subcutaneous tissues.
- wounds
- injections
- pastern dermatitis
severe swelling, pitting edema, pain & heat, lameness, fever
pitting vs non-pitting edema
Pitting Edema, pressure is applied to the swollen area, it leaves an indentation that persists for a few seconds. Increased hydrostatic pressure or decreased oncotic pressure leads to fluid leaking into the interstitial space.
Non-Pitting Edema: When pressure is applied to the swollen area, no indentation is left behind. The skin may feel firm or thickened. Caused by accumulation of proteins, mucopolysaccharides, or lymphatic obstruction, which traps fluid and makes it less mobile.
diagnosis of cellulitis
physical exam
hemogram
imaging with U/S to view tissue thickening
tx of cellulitis
NSAIDs:
flunixin 1.1 mg/kg
firocoxib 0.3 mg/kg loading dose, then 0.1 mg/kg
broad spectrum AB always (IV TMPS will interact with alfa2agonists, death)
clipping, cold hosing
consider full limb bandage (for compression, but may not suit very painful horses)
exercsie (to get the fluid moving)
you can’t sample before AB in cellulitis
