MRI navicular bursitis ,ddft fibrillation and ddft and DSIL adhesions.what next???.

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graliz

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Hi,

The final results came through and showed all of the foregoing plus a few other comments such as navicular bone modelling and fibrocartilage erosion. This is just in left fore and all 3 vets involved so far say it will almost certainly be a bilateral forelimb lameness.

I have spent so many hours looking all the treatments up and the end result seems to be that there is no possible cure and the report only suggests bursae injections and corrective shoeing as management options with a "guarded" prognosis for return to soundness. This is a 9 yr old showjumper with a good record which we bought in January for PC and showjumping teams :( (and heartbars recc by vet+ tried and only made worse)

We keep our horses at livery so I don't have a field ornament option....I have been told by all 3 he won't jump again and is unlikely to be sound as it is all degenerative and it is really a heartbreak. I have been told by one vet that he could go on Danilon all the time but I don't think that would be right to ride knowing that the tendon was in effect fraying all the time and adhesions tearing and reforming.

He is such a nice horse ..just don't know what to do next for the best.........

What would you do??

Has anyone had similar??

Thanks x
 
One of my liveries has Navicular he is still ridden , is 29 years old has corrective shoes on . has Glucosomine and flexi joint supplement. Only has a few odd days when he is pottery.
What sort of farrier you got???

I would get a remedial one they specialize in corrective shoeing
http://www.ivis.org/proceedings/aaep/2000/46.pdf

also contact the Glasgow vets they are the last chance, amazing results they go where no one goes .

http://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/vet/equinehospital/

I would do the above give him 3-6 months and see how he is
 
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Thanks Leviathan,

He has been shod by our usual farriers ,their senior partner doing his forefeet personally since he went lame.The corrective trimming and changing to heartbars only made a change for the worse!It sounds mad but his feet are good at least from the outside. All shoes were taken off for the MRI so he is unshod just now til we decide what to do.

I also had him on NAF Superflex even before he went lame as a supplement which I was reccommended by someone at PC as a preventative supplement and since he went lame he's also been on MSM.
 
Hi,

for info this is part of the MRI report:-

Navicular bursitis and intrabursal soft tissue adhesions, fibrillation of the DDFT,and adhesion of DDFT to the DSIL, DSIL and CSL desmopathy and insertional damage, navicular bone degenerative damage internally and with the underlying fibrocartilage and coffin joint synovitis. Multiple adhesions and loculation proximal area of bursa.

I will go on the sites you suggest,

Thanks Liz
 
graliz said:
The corrective trimming and changing to heartbars only made a change for the worse!
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Just maybe he's a horse that needs to balance his own feet rather than have someone else's idea of perfect balance forced upon him?

Why not take a look at the rocky farm website and do a search on here, you'll see lots of success stories. I hope you manage to find a solution that works for you both :)
 
Thanks Criso, Frankie looks great.., incredible that he is jumping again too! and

Thanks maggiesmum as well, I have emailed to see if they think my horse has any chance given the MRI conclusions x
 
graliz said:
Thanks Criso, Frankie looks great.., incredible that he is jumping again too! and

Thanks maggiesmum as well, I have emailed to see if they think my horse has any chance given the MRI conclusions x
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I'm sorry you've had such a devastating diagnosis.

Well done for emailing Rockley. I'm sure Nic will get back to you soon with some info and a different view on things.
Don't be afraid to call her if you don't hear back quickly though.

Good luck, keep us updated.
 
My horse was also a write off by 2 vets and farrier and I was told he would never be ridden again or field sound to turn away and to PTS. He was assessed 5/6 10ths lame at this worst and was literally on 3 legs.

After trying EVERY single treatment available (and spending an absolute fortune continuously struggling with my insurance company) and stressing my horse out by taking him to and from the vets for a year, I turned to Rockley Farm. Needless to say my horse is still here a year later and is doing really well!!

My only regret is not contacting Rockley Farm before any other treatment. I would STRONGLY urge you to speak to Nic first before trying any conventional treatments which, for most horses, have little if no effect.
 
I can only echo what others have said about Rockley. Dillon was diagnosed with DDFT, navicular bone changes, pedal osteitis, collateral ligaments - thats just from memory without the report in front of me.

The vets gave a very poor prognosis and suggested PTS. (June this year). I had already tried remedial shoeing for 6 months prior to MRI.

Less than two weeks after the MRI he went to Rockley and he is coming home next week.

He's not perfect (yet) but is fine to hack out. (This from a horse my farrier said would never go barefoot!). His recovery is a work in progress and if I can continue with the good work already done hopefully in another 6 months he might be up to a bit more in the way of schooling/dressage. (I'm not really into jumping but who knows)

Its tough making these decisions and listening to so many 'experts' so I feel for you and wish you luck whatever you do.
 
nic83 said:
I can only echo what others have said about Rockley. Dillon was diagnosed with DDFT, navicular bone changes, pedal osteitis, collateral ligaments - thats just from memory without the report in front of me.

The vets gave a very poor prognosis and suggested PTS. (June this year). I had already tried remedial shoeing for 6 months prior to MRI.

Less than two weeks after the MRI he went to Rockley and he is coming home next week.

He's not perfect (yet) but is fine to hack out. (This from a horse my farrier said would never go barefoot!). His recovery is a work in progress and if I can continue with the good work already done hopefully in another 6 months he might be up to a bit more in the way of schooling/dressage. (I'm not really into jumping but who knows)

Its tough making these decisions and listening to so many 'experts' so I feel for you and wish you luck whatever you do.
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Is that 'Dillon with the Wedges'?

Good grief, that went fast. It seems like he only got there last week!

And he's hacking out? Wow - well done him:)
 
My 6 yr old was diagnosed with 'navicular' in May. Had steroid injections into the bursa and remedial shoeing (set further back, almost like natural balance).
After the second shoeing he was almost sound... and then suddenly went hopping lame, even in walk.
I had thought about going barefoot straightaway but thought I'd give it a couple of months with the shoes. So when he went lame, the shoes came off.
Not done an MRI as they say there is always soft tissue damage and it seems like the treatment options don't improve with a more accurate diagnosis.
He's now been barefoot for 7 weeks and the change in his feet is phenomenol! Like yours, his feet looked perfect on the outside but obviously the inside does not match.
Have been taking pictures every week and it really is amazing to see how much feet can change in such a short time!
He lives out, and I walk him in hand 3 - 4 times a week, alternating between the school and the road.
He is now completely sound in walk and again almost sound in trot on a straight line but still lame on a circle.
Hoping to start walking him under saddle again in a month or so but tbh I'm working on a full year out of proper work as you would for any tendon/ligament damage.
I'm doing the rehab at home so I think it's probably taking me a lot longer than Rockley Farm but I'm convinced that going barefoot is giving him the best chance of recovery.
Hope it works out for your boy.
 
Oberon - Thats my boy! If only I knew then what I know now!

Yes he goes out - cautiously over stoney ground but fine on roads and softer ground. We will take it gentley and one step at a time but he is in a far better situation than he was faced with a few months ago.

Rockley is a fabulous place and Nic is a huge source of knowledge and experience, I'm just so glad I found it. (which was via this forum).
 
Thanks so much to all of you who have posted.. when my daughter and i were up at the yard earlier we watched one of the other horses trying to get ours to "play" in the field and he is going short even at walk and clearly lame in trot (which he was very reluctant to do). Back in January when we got him he was quite forward and buzzy and he has changed so much I just worry how much pain he has?

Tried Devils Relief as well previously............no difference....

Anyway thanks again and hope all yours come good x
 
Delta99 said:
Hoping to start walking him under saddle again in a month or so but tbh I'm working on a full year out of proper work as you would for any tendon/ligament damage.
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I think you will find that this is unnecessary. Rockley rehabs, and my own was the same, are normally capable of full work much earlier that this. Mine was 12 weeks from lame to jumping.

The difference is that it is the incorrect foot balance which is causing the tendon/ligament damage. Once you correct the balance by allowing the horse to grow the foot that he needs, the straining is gone.

With an ordinary tendon strain higher in the leg, you need the horse to be back doing exactly the same stuff that caused the lameness in the first place. With internal foot tendon strains, you don't.

Listen to your horse is the key. If you increase the work gradually and he says he's ready for more, he's ready for more.
 
cptrayes said:
I think you will find that this is unnecessary. Rockley rehabs, and my own was the same, are normally capable of full work much earlier that this. Mine was 12 weeks from lame to jumping.

The difference is that it is the incorrect foot balance which is causing the tendon/ligament damage. Once you correct the balance by allowing the horse to grow the foot that he needs, the straining is gone.

With an ordinary tendon strain higher in the leg, you need the horse to be back doing exactly the same stuff that caused the lameness in the first place. With internal foot tendon strains, you don't.

Listen to your horse is the key. If you increase the work gradually and he says he's ready for more, he's ready for more.
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Thanks for that, like I said, I think he's almost there... but not quite yet.
 
criso said:
http://rockleyfarm.blogspot.com/p/rehab-horses.html or do a search on here for Rockley or Navicular.

Mine had assorted soft tissue damage to both feet and at one point I was wondering if he would even stay in light work, he's Frankie in the link below.

http://rockleyfarm.blogspot.com/2011/04/what-2-of-ex-rehab-horses-did-over.html
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And for now order the book - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Feet-First-...=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1317463225&sr=1-1
I've just finished reading it, very good and informative whilst being easy to understand!
 
Just so frustrating when Farriers and Vets continue to avoid barefoot as an option - or forcefully opposing it if the owners bring it up.
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As far as I am aware, not one of Rockley's rehabs have been PTS following treatment.

The Vets and Farriers cannot claim the same success rate.

And that doesn't take into account the other barefooters out there who are successfully treating rehabs at home.

And yet owners are left with a devastating diagnosis, facing expensive treatments and poor prognoses. Then left hanging if they consider barefoot.....all for the lack of 'looking outside the box'
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Oops, sorry - bit ranty today
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Bailey my boy had collateral ligament damage and was lame for 2 years. He was meant to be PTS! He eventually went to Rockley Farm and went from lame to hunting within 4 months. A year later and he hunts, jumps, hacks and is about to go affilated dressage. You can't get better than that. Nic is brilliant and knows her stuff and has horses that have no where else to go. For me it was the last option, boy do i wish it had been the first. Good luck and call her.xxxxxxxx
 
You Have my sympathy .I had horse with similiar injuries and spent thousands on him to give him chance,he was depressed as field ornament at livery in restricted paddocks so I gave him to someone to work in hand and be turned away on the promise that he had year off .He has come back into work as happy hacker she doesnt want to jump, has lovely life in 16 acre paddocks with company.He was tb that had foul feet but is now barefoot and it has sorted most of his problems.He also had every treatment available the only one that really worked for him was complete time out.
 
One of mine was diagnosed last september with serious Impar ligament damage & adhesions to the DDFT.
The vets wrote him off, I went down the route of remidial farrier work for 4 weeks however there was a noticeable worsening so we then took him barefoot.
He went through varying stages of on off lameness from the October but was noticeably better un-shod.
I continued with the straight line walk work in hand. In Feb this year we put him under saddle with straight line walk work. He was still having the odd lameness issue.
From April he has been completely sound, I brought him back into full work a few months back & he has stayed sound even during lateral work.

Barefoot is definitely the way to go, my boy needed to grow his foot the way he wanted it, once he achieved this he's been sound ever since. I'm over the moon & my vets are astounded.
 
dressagecrazy said:
One of mine was diagnosed last september with serious Impar ligament damage & adhesions to the DDFT.
The vets wrote him off, I went down the route of remidial farrier work for 4 weeks however there was a noticeable worsening so we then took him barefoot.
He went through varying stages of on off lameness from the October but was noticeably better un-shod.
I continued with the straight line walk work in hand. In Feb this year we put him under saddle with straight line walk work. He was still having the odd lameness issue.
From April he has been completely sound, I brought him back into full work a few months back & he has stayed sound even during lateral work.

Barefoot is definitely the way to go, my boy needed to grow his foot the way he wanted it, once he achieved this he's been sound ever since. I'm over the moon & my vets are astounded.
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Fantastic news, am so pleased for you!!
 
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