Kissing Spines

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Ivebeentangoed

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Hi there,
I am new here and am looking for any information people have with horses with kissing spines.
My boy has just been diagnosed. The 15th/16th and 16th/17th vertebrae are touching.
I have owned him for about 10 weeks, he had me off at the beginning and I was hospitalised, he then had 6 weeks off as I was recovering, after that I rode for about a week then he was attempting to throw me off again. He felt very tense when being ridden and generally not a happy boy so I took him to the vets on Friday.
He was given a steroid injection and I have been told to lunge long and low for about 5 weeks then I may try and start riding him again.
The vet told me the steroid will either work or it wont, so obviously I will know more once I attempt to ride again.
I called them this morning to ask about the option of an operation as I think that the injection will wear off eventually if it does work and I will be back to square one in 6 months or so. She was reluctant to go for that as it does carry its risks and said to see how this treatment goes first.
Has anyone had any good results with treatments for this without going for the op?
Have never come across this before so any information will be gratefully received!
xx
 
if the injections work, i'd stick with them. you'll have to repeat them every 6 months or so as yr vet said but in my experience kissing spine hurts and horses remember pain and an operation is very expensive if the horse is still going to remember the pain and play up. Give the injections a go for as long as you can -if they work, stick with it!
 
My horse had the op and if you can possibly avoid it, do!

I would think very very hard about having it done on another horse again
 
Rowenna said:
ps, do you have the horses back done at all? It wont fix the problem but will help with the muscle tension.
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The vet said to get a physio down to him so I am on the hunt for one in my area that comes recommended as I know there are a lot of horsey back people out there who aren't that great!
 
Laura1812 said:
My horse had the op and if you can possibly avoid it, do!

I would think very very hard about having it done on another horse again
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Oh really? Why's that if you don't mind me asking? Have looked up a lot about it on the internet and the operation seems to be the preferred choice by many. I would love to hear your experience of it.
PM me if you would prefer xx
 
My horse had the op and would recommend it. He is a different horse now (perfectly safe and enjoying eventing). The injections do work on milder ks though your horse will need more at more regualr intervals, so if your horse is younger rather than older I would recommend an op. Also my vet had a SJ that had an adverse reaction the steriod injections (despite having them before) and was PTS bacause of lami caused by the injections.
Laura- Why wouldn't you recommend the op? I found the box rest difficult as horse didn't enjoy being in, had a lot of sedalin! But after 2 weeks he started walking out in hand and he soon calmed down.
Sorry to hear about your horse but there is hope. My horse had the op last june and got 5th in his first BE event this june, before his op he was nearly unrideable. :)
 
My mare is having KS surgery next week.. I've had her for 16 months but she's been in on/off work for a variety of reasons... To cut a very long story short, she's had two steroid injections 6 months apart and they made no real difference. Now 10 and a half months and £2,500 into my insurance claim, surgery has been recommended, meaning that money as well as time is running out...

My advice would be to try one steroid injection and if it doesn't make a clear difference, look more into the surgery route. The one thing I found incredibly useful was when my vet blocked my girl's back (along the affected spinal processes) with local anaesthetic and I then rode her - it gave me a glimpse of how good she could be when not in pain and proved (in my mind, and my vets) that her back was causing her significant pain.

Good luck!
 
LucyDT said:
The one thing I found incredibly useful was when my vet blocked my girl's back (along the affected spinal processes) with local anaesthetic and I then rode her - it gave me a glimpse of how good she could be when not in pain and proved (in my mind, and my vets) that her back was causing her significant pain.

Good luck!
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My vet did that as well, the difference was amazing. Good luck and I hope your mare's op goes well :)
 
My instructors horse has the op and was still eventing up to BE100 afterwards, he's retired from eventing but is still used for lessons right into his 20s! So there is definatly hope :) Good luck hope everything goes well
 
Because I am a very lucky girl, both of my horses have had KSS. Injections are all very well, but if they have the condition, then they won't fix the problem full term. Both of mine are back in work (before they made a bizarre semi-suicide pact and have BOTH done suspensory tendons grrr...). I would recommend going to Sven Kold at Willesley if you can though. He does it so often that you can be sure he will be able to give you the best advice. I was really happy with the service I got and he is always ready to answer any Q's post-op for quite a long time. Good luck though. Its not the end of the world, although it might feel like it now. xxx
 
I had mine operated on in August last year as she had lost alot of weight and started to stop jumping. It was alot of work getting her back to full strength, especially as I was injured shortly after her op. But now we are back on it. She is lovely to ride, calmer, safer and so much more happier. She is a star and appreciates what we have done for her as so very loving nowadays.
 
another vote for sven kold, he could do it with his eyes closed. i attended a seminar about KS with him, it was fab!
mine is currently have the injections for mild KS T14-16 but im not entirely sure they are working, but the vet isnt keen to take him down the surgery route but the likely hood the insurance will pay for it is slim as he has navicular and bone spavins. my vet suggested that with mild KS with introducing a new way of going to him it should reduce it getting a worse. but i am concerned that the injections arn't going to stop what is actually happening where as the surgery removes the problem causing the pain.
 
My horse also had KS surgery and I'm another who would not go down that route again; at least not unless I went to Sven Kold as by all accounts he is the top expert in it. The surgery did not work for my horse for whatever reason, and he found the lunging rehab stressful which led to other problems. Undeniably it works fine for some horses but it was the worst decision I ever made.
 
I don't want to be negative, but in my experience I would avoid steroids, months of lunging, Willesley and Sven Kold altogether!!!

In 2007 I lunged from April to September after steroids and it made no difference!! The operation (Sept 07) removed the problem - a spur of bone growth on the back of 16th dorsal spine (not even a real KS case), but 3 years down the line, after the "simple" op, the ligament damage caused in the operation deteriorated further and she had to be PTS this August :( The other horse I knew who also had a KS op at the same time as my girl (also at Willesley and by Sven Kold) was put down too!

KS are a bloody nightmare, I wouldn't wish it on anyone!

Best of luck with your case!!
 
Jess1 said:
I don't want to be negative, but in my experience I would avoid steroids, months of lunging, Willesley and Sven Kold altogether!!!

In 2007 I lunged from April to September after steroids and it made no difference!! The operation (Sept 07) removed the problem - a spur of bone growth on the back of 16th dorsal spine (not even a real KS case), but 3 years down the line, after the "simple" op, the ligament damage caused in the operation deteriorated further and she had to be PTS this August :( The other horse I knew who also had a KS op at the same time as my girl (also at Willesley and by Sven Kold) was put down too!

KS are a bloody nightmare, I wouldn't wish it on anyone!

Best of luck with your case!!
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I couldn't edit it, but thought i best add that throughout all the post-op problems my vet and I tried to contact Sven, but he wasn't interested in the slightest :mad:
 
As some of you may know my mare is now 9 weeks post KS op for the removal of 4 pieces of bone. If you have a look in The veterinary section, top thread for pictures of injuries etc you will see on page 8 my mare's before and after x rays.

My mare had 3 weeks solid box rest and then approx 15 min turnout twice a day in a strip no bigger than a stable just so she could nibble some grass. Then into a small pen for 4 weeks. She is now back out in her paddock. She goes out every day from 6.30am till 4pm. I have decided that I will not start lunging her untill the spring when the weather and light improves but will take her out for walks in hand at weekends as she's very good to lead.

As yet I have no idea if she will be rideable again but I don't see why not. She will have Physio starting in 3 weeks time, so I guess that will give me some indication of how things are. My mare seems very mobile and happy, still has her massive overtrack in walk and can stretch round either side to itch a back leg or her tummy. My gut feeling was that I wouldn't have been happy to start an intensive rehab programe preferring to let my horse gain some strength naturally before embarking on a programne to build up her muscles.

Like I said time will tell and all horses are different. Watch this space.
 
My mare has been operated on today by Sven (after so many people recommended him to me on this forum!) and has had two processes removed, after steroids had no lasting effect.. I'm hoping that she's one of the lucky ones (I also have a horse who is now retired after unsuccessful KS surgery 5 years ago).

Still far too early to say but so far Sven has been incredibly thorough, and from referal up until I finally met him yesterday, he couldn't have been more helpful and encouraging. It's not a decision I made lightly, especially after being here once before - but this really is her only chance, so it had to be worth giving a very special horse a chance. Fingers crossed..!
 
The vet did say that if he had to have the operation it will be standing, am getting on him tomorrow to see how he is so keeping my fingers crossed that all the pessoa work is paying off! xx
 
One of mine had a kissing spine, she had ultra sound & acupressure.. we lunged her in a pessoa 3 times per week for 15-20 mins which has really muscled her back up & now she is fine..had the vets physio out this week & there's no tension in her back & she's really pleased with her. She now canters on the correct leg every time & jumps without bucking!! She may have to have the ultra sound again in the future but scans have shown the condition is now stable..Don't forget many top horses that compete have kissing spines & it's not the end of the world!!!
 
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