This is an archived Horseadvice.com Discussion. The parent article and menus are available on the navigation menu below:
HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Lameness » Diseases of the Spine, Back & Pelvis » Topics on Diseases of the Back Not Covered Above » Neck Pain and Injuries in Horses »
  Discussion on Mysterious chest/shoulder/neck soreness
Author Message

Posted on Friday, Apr 6, 2001 - 11:09 am:

I know that this is a somewhat nebulous problem, so I'll try to be as concrete as I can. At the end of February my 15 y/o Appendix QH mare started showing extreme discomfort during grooming. (At no time during any of these past weeks has she shown any sign of being in heat, and she's never had these symptoms during any of her prior heats.) Her neck muscles were rock-hard and she didn't want to be touched there, or on her shoulders. A couple of days later we couldn't get near her anywhere except her hindquarters -- a hand placed on her chest sent her 6 inches in the air, a touch on her shoulders sent her sideways, etc. I rode her lightly on my vet's recommendation, but a week later she bucked under saddle for the first time in the year-plus that I've owned her. She was OK as I mounted and sat, but when she took two steps forward she DrOpped out from under me and then bucked. I got off right away and hand-walked and jogged her -- 100% sound. I scheduled our vet/chiropractor (he's both) to come out, and during the couple of weeks that we waited I worked her lightly on the longe. She was sound, moving normally, but tossing her head and looking just plain uncomfortable. This horse is a sweetheart who always has a kind gaze and seeks attention, but during these weeks she had a "hard" look in her eye and avoided people. By the time that the chiro came she was slightly better but not much. He adjusted her and said that her sternum and atlas joint were "out." Her neck was so sore that we had a hard time getting her to stand still for examination. He found no signs of trauma, but guessed that she may have slipped (her paddock is muddy) and wrenched a foreleg. He found no signs of swelling or tearing, though, which he thought was odd. He advised giving her 48 hours off, which I did. But 48 hours later, her pain was concentrated in the pectoral region and very bad. A hand on her chest or behind her forelegs made her knees buckle, and she would almost fall. Her neck was again horribly tight and sore. But still no swelling or lameness. She would move right out as she always does when jogged.

The vet came out that Tuesday (4 days after the adjustment). He said that he has seen symptoms like this only once before, in a horse that was developing a tumor. To rule that out, he took blood to test for fibrinogen, and also tested muscle enzyme levels. He warned me that her enzyme levels would be at least a little elevated because of the tightness and soreness. But lo and behold, her enzymes were at the low end of normal (as was her fibrinogen). The vet called this "bizarre." He put her on a 10-day course of Robaxin (methylcarbamol) and said to hand-walk her for 15 mins. every day.

I went out of town for a week, but a friend hand-walked her for me and said that by the 5th day on the Robaxin she was once again enjoying grooming sessions and seemed OK to the touch. The course of Robaxin ended on Friday. When I returned on Saturday I was overjoyed to find my sweet wonderful horse back. She was friendly and relaxed. I rode her lightly Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday. She was eager to go. Then last night I went out to the barn for a visit. As I walked up to her stall I saw that she had the "hard" look in her eye again. Sure enough, she fled to the corner as I went in, then didn't want to be touched on her neck, which was hard as a rock. She usually stands ground-tied for grooming, but last night strained against cross-ties to get away.

The vet is stumped, as am I. The Robaxin seems to have provided symptomatic relief, but we can't figure out a cause. Has anyone out there ever seen anything like this? Thanks for any input!

Lisa

Posted on Saturday, Apr 7, 2001 - 12:57 pm:

Hello Lisa,
I would next check is the possiblity that the skin is painful from either a topical treatment or possible dermatophillus. If muscles were the problem you can be almost sure the enzymes would have elevated. It is possible the test was incorrect for any of a dozen reasons, so should be reconsidered. It is very possible the Robaxin response was incidental but we should keep it in mind.


The only time I see that type pain is from staph folliculitis or dermatophillus (skin infections). These problems are usually self limiting and not always real obvious other than the skin may be hot and VERY painful to the touch. Usually this is followed with hair loss but of course this time of year that would be normal.

Lastly is the rare possiblity, at least at this age, of pinced nerve root or cervical instablity either of which would require radiograhps or possible even myelogram for diagnosis.
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Apr 26, 2001 - 11:32 am:

Thanks as always for your helpful input Dr. O. Whatever this was, it was in the 80% of problems that are self-limiting as you describe. My mare never showed any signs of skin problems other than the touchiness, and as of this week even that is about 90% gone. My vet suggested offering her minerals free-choice, separately from salt, on the theory that she may have had some sort of metabolic imbalance affecting her muscle function. I only started that this week, but she is sucking them down as though they were carrots. I will be alert for any recurrences. Thanks again.
Home Page | Top of Page | Join Us!
Horseadvice.com is a BBB Accredited Business. Click for the BBB Business Review of this Horse Training in Stokesdale NC