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Discussion on Old tendon injury
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Monday, Jan 31, 2005 - 4:21 pm:
Dr. O.. I have a mare that has come up dead lame as in hopping to keep off a hind leg, within 48 hours she is completely sound.. this has happened three times from no apparent reason.. either she has come out of the stall like this or from the pasture..
I called out my vet he found a thickening of her hind leg just under the hock so he did an ultrasound and found a old injury.. He is amazed that the mare can go from hopping lame to fine in such short order and suggested that her tendon sheath becomes inflamed and pinches a nerve thus the acute pain, and when the swelling goes down she is 100% sound.. Have you heard of such a thing..?
Obviously, I will not be able to count on this mare for show season but am wondering what I can do to maybe keep this from happening often.. yesterday I rode her in a long walk warm up, 25 mins.. then did some light trot work maybe 20 mins. in a long and low frame, no lateral work etc ..(she had limped slightly three days prior, but not since) I let her go to graze for a 1/2 hour then put her in her stall, she had not shown any signs of lameness.. this AM I went into her box and she had not eaten breakfast and was hopping lame ??<> The light work must have set this off even tho she was not off at the time. A after thought, I wonder if I had bute her and put a standing wrap on her if this might not have happened...
Any insight would be helpful .. thanks..
On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with SPOTS..
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Monday, Jan 31, 2005 - 9:21 pm:
Swollen tendon sheath..pinched nerve...hogwash. Are you sure she is not catching her patellar ligament? See Equine Diseases » Lameness » Diseases of the Upper Rear Limb » Diseases of the Stifle » Stifle Lock: Upward Fixation of the Patella. Until we know what the cause is Ann we cannot begin to guess what the cure might be. The next time it ocurrs the vet needs to come right out or perhaps you could videotape it.
DrO
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Tuesday, Feb 1, 2005 - 12:26 am:
Hum, that is what I suspected... this vet is new to me, and I have found out that he injects joints like giving out candy to kids.. something I know is not right to ''just do''..
goes to show you , one must follow their gut as well as 'good' advice from a ''well known'' vet...Thanks...
On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with SPOTS..
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Tuesday, Feb 1, 2005 - 12:36 am:
Oh,i have seen the catching ligament on other horses.. i am pretty sure this is not it.. when the pain lessons she will limp on her toe and won't put her heal down.. so i am thinking the stretching motion is painful somewhere at the time.. ..interestingly enough tho, like i said within a day or two she comes out fine.. will see about hauling her to a clinic the next time to do a work up..
thanks ..
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Tuesday, Feb 1, 2005 - 6:16 am:
Your description does not convince me as horses with upward fixation, through the actions of the stay apparutus, have their fetlocks forced into flexion: they cannot put their heels down. I agree that it is a very characteristic motion and if you have seen one it is hard to mistake it for weight bearing lameness, it just that it can go from no lameness to unable to use the leg and back again in less than a minute.
A foot abscess can go from non-weight bearing to sound in a few days if it finds a way to drain itself.
DrO
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Wednesday, Feb 2, 2005 - 1:07 pm:
Tuesday the mare is putting weight on the toe slightly, I have given her bute 2 grams Monday total and one gram bute Tuesday... I call the clinic and get an appointment for Wed. AM.. so I don't give her any bute Tuesday night... Wed. AM I hook up the trailer.. bring her out of the box.. COMPLETELY SOUND AT THE WALK.. over tracking by two hoof prints.. a little tight at the trot, but really nothing different that she warms out of with a long walk trot warm up..
Ok gosh, Dr. O I think you are on to something.. I called the clinic and they agreed that if it were a bow she would not be sound NOW this quickly.. and well I canceled the appointment.. the clinic said to call when this happens again and that they will squeeze me in then to see what is going on..
This is the 4th time that she has been dead/ non weight baring lame and within 48 hours sound..!~
Ok this being said.. have you seen the upward fixation last this long? You stated one minute sound the next non weight baring.. She does not have that unique stride of what I have seen with horses with a ''sticking'' problem..
and.. what is the protocol now..? Stall rest ? Turn out? Riding as usual..???
thanks as always Ann
On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with SPOTS..
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Thursday, Feb 3, 2005 - 8:34 am:
I have seen legs that were stuck for days before anyone called and then had to go out there and forcibly or surgically unlock them. If a horse is allowed to go on like this long enough they permanantly damage the stifle.
We need to prove or rule out this idea. Any suggestions I make should be approved by your veterinarian. While sound, turn out perhaps in a controlled observed environment like a large paddock just in case the leg becomes stuck. While lame stall rest to minimize damage. Someone who can determine beyond all doubt whether the horse has upward fixation needs to see the horse while lame.
DrO
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Thursday, Feb 3, 2005 - 8:49 pm:
Dr. O.. when you say ''stuck'' how does the leg look..? With this mare she has her leg down she rests the toe on the ground but does not put weight on it for the first few hours, then she will weight the toe when in motion the next few hours, finally the whole foot is flat and she is ''sound'' again...
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Friday, Feb 4, 2005 - 7:32 am:
We have a description of this and related conditions at Equine Diseases » Lameness » Diseases of the Upper Rear Limb » Diseases of the Stifle » Stifle Lock: Upward Fixation of the Patella. The main thing that I miss from your description is that with UFP the leg is held out slightly behind the horse. One other thing occurs to me, though your presentation is a bit unusual. A flexor muscle spasm (cramp) might have such a episodic appearance and blood levels of muscle enzymes might ferret it out?
DrO
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Friday, Feb 4, 2005 - 10:24 am:
blood test, can I have this done when she is NOT off? Or does she have to be lame for the ''levels'' to show at the time..? No, she holds her leg/hoof under her where it should be when off, just non weight bearing..
I do notice tho that the cannon bone below the hock is thicker then the other leg, * the old tendon injury*... could this be something that hurts from time to time, or am I on the wrong track with this idea? I would assume if the tendon was re injured or sore that it would not resolve this quickly...
Dr. O you are WONDERFUL for taking the time you do to help us explore ideas/questions to ask our home vets/clinics...
Ann
On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with SPOTS..
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Sunday, Feb 6, 2005 - 9:34 am:
I would wait for the next episode but because these enzymes persist long after they are released by the muscle you can certainly check later. For more on this see Equine Diseases » Lameness » Muscle & Tendon Diseases » Tying Up, Rhabdomyolysis, and Shivers (EPSM). Though your horse does not have typical forms of any of these diseases there is a section that explains about muscle enzymes.
DrO
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Monday, Feb 7, 2005 - 3:29 pm:
I have to agree that she is not showing signs like one of my mares did that DID have EPSM problems.. Thus far the mare is still sound and going well.. Like i had said this now is the fourth time, so i am banking it will happen again...That time i will get her in the trailer and truck her to the clinic right away... Of course i get the stange stuff...
Thanks for being there....
Ann
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