Cortisone Injections!

[TheresaW]

My horse recently had cortisone injections in both hocks because he has been diagnosed with arthritis. I was told that the injections could last for up to 6 months. How will I know when he will need injecting again? He wasn't lame before diagnosis, it was only discovered because he'd been kicked and hock was very swollen which led to x-rays.

 

[monstermunch]

My question to your vet would be why he felt the need to inject such a powerful drug when your horse was not even lame. Many horses have arthritis and nearly all horses will eventually develop it as it is a natural process of degeneration through life. However there are ways of managing arthritis without the need to inject with cortisone. Even with horses that are lame I personally don't agree with the use of cortisone except in exceptional cases. It has been shown to actually speed up the degeneration process when the affects wear off. Cortisone is a steroid and as such it is an extremely agressive drug and should not be approached as anything less. It merely masks the symptoms of arthritis rather than helping the arthritis in any way. Hence my question why your vet felt the need to use it. My advice would be to do some research on very good strength joint supplements as these are extremely beneficial in situations like yours. They help to repair existing damage and prevent further damage. The othe way to manage arthritis is keeping a horse in work to ensure that muscular strength is maintained taking the load of the joints themselves. Other things you may already be aware of such as not trotting on hard ground for prolonged periods and not jumping too many times a week or on hard ground. You may find the website www.riaflex-equine.co.uk of some help. It has lots of info about arthritis and detailed explanations about the use of joint supplements.
Hope this helps you. Good luck!