Eldolily
Member
Hello!
Two days ago my 6yo gelding started showing a big swelling in the hock area (left hind). We promptly did some X-rays which showed a fracture in the lateral malleolus with a free fragment, and some fluid accumulation (hence the swelling) due to irritation as well as some blod clots in the area of the distal hock, almost certainly caused by trauma.
The horse is not particularly lame, maybe a bit of delay in the left hind but nothing prominent or obvious, and he doesn't show signs of pain at palpation. The vet even considered the possibility of the fracture being older but asymptomatic until now (which I honestly find pretty unlikely).
According to the vet the fragment is difficult to remove and surgery would come with a higher risk of lameness than the injury itself, so he does not advise surgery but at least 4 weeks of rest, after which new xrays should be taken. He thinks he should be able to recover fully as most patients he had in the past did, but he naturally can't promise anything. I am currently stressing out A LOT as most resources online talk about surgical removement of the fragment as the main treatment.
Does anyone have any experience with similar injuries and can give me some insight on the prognosis, recovery time and outcome?
Two days ago my 6yo gelding started showing a big swelling in the hock area (left hind). We promptly did some X-rays which showed a fracture in the lateral malleolus with a free fragment, and some fluid accumulation (hence the swelling) due to irritation as well as some blod clots in the area of the distal hock, almost certainly caused by trauma.
The horse is not particularly lame, maybe a bit of delay in the left hind but nothing prominent or obvious, and he doesn't show signs of pain at palpation. The vet even considered the possibility of the fracture being older but asymptomatic until now (which I honestly find pretty unlikely).
According to the vet the fragment is difficult to remove and surgery would come with a higher risk of lameness than the injury itself, so he does not advise surgery but at least 4 weeks of rest, after which new xrays should be taken. He thinks he should be able to recover fully as most patients he had in the past did, but he naturally can't promise anything. I am currently stressing out A LOT as most resources online talk about surgical removement of the fragment as the main treatment.
Does anyone have any experience with similar injuries and can give me some insight on the prognosis, recovery time and outcome?