So your horse has been lame or not performing as well as usual, time to call the vet!
Here is what you can expect from your lameness exam…
The Physical Exam
The first step of any lameness exam is to observe the horse standing and to examine the horse looking for any areas or pain, heat, or swelling. Observation of a horse’s posture while standing can be very helpful and findings of pain or inflammation around a joint or other structure can help to immediately narrow down the list of possible problems. Once the horse has been examined, the next step is to watch the horse move.
The Dynamic Exam
This stage of the exam can vary depending on the severity of the lameness. A severely lame horse may only be asked to walk briefly. More often this will involve trotting the horse in a straight line while observing how it moves. For subtle or complicated lamenesses, further observing the horse on a circle, watching the horse canter, trotting the horse on both hard and soft surfaces, or asking to observe the horse undersaddle may also be helpful. But in most cases, all of this trotting only allows us to determine which leg is causing the pain, not the exact problem area, which leads to the next step.
Isolating the Problem Area
There are a couple tests that are helpful for further narrowing down the source of pain. The first and most familiar for most people is flexion. Flexion tests involve isolating joints (to the best of our ability) and holding them in slightly stressed positions for a length of time then trotting the horse off. A “positive” flexion test often indicates some degree of arthritis or another cause of pain in that joint.
Often the best and most accurate method of isolating the correct area causing lameness is diagnostic blocking. “Blocks” involve injecting a local anesthetic into an area around a nerve to numb an area of the leg. If the painful area is in the region that was just numbed, the horse will become sound or significantly more comfortable.
Imaging
Once a specific area has been isolated as the source of the problem, there are often still multiple structures in that area that could be injured. Imaging is the best way to determine not only which structure is injuried, but how severe is the injury and what is the best treatment to pursue.
Redtail Equine offers mobile x-ray and ultrasound services. X-ray is often the best way to evaluate bony structures while ultrasound is very useful for evaluation of soft tissues such as tendons and ligaments. One or both of these might be recommended to fully evaluate your horse’s lameness.
Treatment
Once a diagnosis has been obtained, Dr. Wood will work with you on the best treatment plan for your horse.
For more information, please feel free to call us at (303) 775-4061 to request an appointment.
