Nerve blocks, bone scans, X rays???

[pottamus]

Is it just me or does this seem to be a worryingly increasing trend in the horse world???

I only ask because of the sheer volume of posts regarding horse lameness in this and other forums.
Don't get me wrong I symphasise 100% with all who have horses wih lameness issues but why can't vets seem to diagnose lameness issues without going through all these complicated tests that are not always (it seems) conclusive? I have come back into riding after a 10 year break and it seems now that more and more horses are going lame? And the vets cannot locate the lameness so go through all these tests almost straight away...

Is this the reality of it and is lameness on the increase, because I would be interested to hear what you guys think...especially those that have or are going through this now...

 

[Bossanova]

Theyre increasingly popular but access to them has become increasingly easier and also technology has moved on to such an extent that these diagnostic techniques are becoming almost a normal part of lameness diagnosis.
I think it's fantastic that whereas before many lamenesses were unexplained and horses were unable to be treated appropriately, now almost all problems can be detected and an appropriate course of treatment devised.

 

[Happy Horse]

I think it is because the accuracy is so good and the ability to definitely locate a lameness rather than just guessing. I don't know why people get so upset about these tests, they can't be forced to have them done on their horses but if they want a quick diagnosis and fix then this is the best way to do it. The increase is only due to the fact the technology is now thankfully available.

 

[AmyMay]

I think it's fantastic that we have access to these kinds of facillities for our horses. Mobile x-ray machines, scanners etc have all made the diagnosis of lameness problems so much easiter, and much quicker.

Thank god for it I say.

 

[pottamus]

Yes, that's why I posed the question really. I am fortunate (touch wood) to have not been in this position and hope not to be. But I did wonder whether it was down to increased accessibility of such tests and progression or something else?
When I last had horses at home with my parents it just never seemed to happen...I just was not aware of ours or my many horse owning friends in the area having the lameness problems that seem to be common place today...so I was curious to know whether times have changed due to better technology or if there was an element of conditions/management/increasing work demands having an effect too???

 

[hollibobs]

I have to say I'm very grateful for X rays. I took my horse to the vets yesterday as last week he developed swelling in his tendon area. Initially vet came out and suggested he had just knocked himself in the field.

Anyway it started to go down and was looking good until Tuesday of this week when the swelling started to return. It turns out he has fractured his splint bone!!!! Without the x-ray I doubt that would have ever been found so thank god for technology I say....

 

[BenjaminBunny]

if it wasn't for x-rays and scans i wouldn't have found out my recently purchased horse had suspensory ligament damage

he had no lameness - but i knew something wasn't right about 2 months into owning him - he wasn't his usual self

because they had an suspicion it was ligament damage from the way his pastern angle is low but they needed to determine where the damage was and whether it was the actual ligament or whether the ligament had detached from the bone

the scans also have shown the recovery and improvement - he goes in for another scan in a week - and hopefully he will be ok from then on

as people suggested and i've asked my vet - it's not that these injuries are becoming more prevalent - it's that diagnostics have become much more sophisicated - rather than a general diagnoisis we're getting specifics which in my opinion is only going to help us do what is best for our horses

similarities can be found in the human world - how often was cancer found in the past - hardly ever but with increase in technology (for both diagnosis and in our every day lives) and longer life spans - we are experiencing more problems

but conversely we are also expecting and pushing horses further and further

for info my horse did his injury before i owned him - he passed a stage 5 vet - he just made it worse while he was settling in (charging around like a loon)

 

[sally2008]

I agree with you Pottamus. Whilst it is wonderful to have the increased availability of diagnositic tools, I too am worried about the increasing tendancy to over-diagnose rather than treat the obvious problems first before spending all of clients insurance money, leaving them with nothing for treatment.

A good friend of mine is a classic example and I'm sure she won't mind me quoting her case - her horse had intermittent lameness so she went through thousands of pounds worth of x-rays, nerve blocks and MRI scans, used up all her insurance money and was told the horse "most probably" had DJD and navicular and all she could look forward to was him being a pasture pet kept sound on bute. The vet never addressed the issue of foot imbalance or skeletal alignment - once these were corrected the horse went and stayed sound and has been happily competing in dressage and showjumping for the last 8 months.

Now I'm not saying that the horses problems have miraculously disappeared but I do wonder why vets are failing to meet alot of horse owners needs - yes we want to know what's wrong when theres a problem, but we also want to be able to have the use of our horses. I believe they need to find a better balance between diagnosis and treatment.

 

[pottamus]

Yes, Sally2008, it is difficult really and can see that your friend went through a lot of expense and stress for what turned out to be something simple really. I think my concern is that when you are in that situation and the vet advises all these tests...you obviously feel compelled to go with it because after all, they are the professional and trained vet and you are not! You also want to get to the bottom of things quickly for your horses sake. It is difficult if not impossible to question a professional because of the 'what if' senario.

 

[sally2008]

I quite agree, which is why I think vets have a responsibility to their clients. Of course they want to use their expensive new toys, they pay enough for them, and ultimately they are in business to make money, I just get frustrated because these days I so seldom see any lameness treatment being undertaken without immediately jumping to these use of these tools.

Maybe I am over-generalising and I apologise if that is the case but it seems to me that if an unsoundness is not "cured" by bute and box rest, the next step seems always to be x-rays / nerve blocks / MRI. I feel many are not as team spirited as perhaps they should be and those that work well in conjunction with other specialists, experienced farriers, chiros, dentists and the like are rare indeed! Disallusioned of deepest East Sussex here! LOL!

 

[Bri]

I am going through exactly this at the moment.
Horse is lame, and vet has referred him for bone scans and x-rays.
Initially I just accepted it, but am now starting to question why my vet hasn't bothered to scan the leg, or look at his back at all.

If I'm totally honest I can't even remember him even running his hands down the leg and giving it a good feel. It was just nerve blocks straight off and now they are proving difficult and inconclusive...it's bone scans and mri's!

Vet thinks we will be wasting money to get a physio/chiropractor out, but we currently have a bill of over 1k and still are no nearer to finding out whats wrong with my horse. If he does go ahead with scans/mri all insurance money (if they even decide they will pay) will be used up, and we will have to foot the bill for any necessary treatment he needs ourself.

 

[katelarge]

As per Sally's friend above, I have had some bad experiences with vets and their toys! My horse had was unlevel behind last year and unwilling to raise his leg for the farrier. My vets first off decided it was the OTHER leg, which they nerve blocked to no avail (not surprisningly as it was the wrong leg). They then decided theywere at a total loss and the only things to scan his entire spine and x-ray both back legs. They also told me that an old splint he had was windgalls! I was tempted to ask if they'd actually been working on a different horse!

So, I went and got a second opinion vet, who came out, diagnosed a pelvis rotation straight away, gave him some chiropractic, and then with regular work on his back the horse was back in full work in a month or so! He was very critical of vets who are unable to diagnose quite simple things like this without resorting to every gadget known to man.

On the other hand, when my horse was recently recovering from mild laminitis, my vet suggested X-rays of his front feet. I went for these and was glad I did as they were able to reassure themselves the pedal bone had not rotated. But the big suprise was that the X-rays showed up a slight roughening of the bone anround his coffin joints, which is not and has never affected him, but now I know, I can stick him on cortaflex and manage accordingly. I'd never have known that without X-rays!

 

[H-J]

I am extremely grateful for Nerve blocks and X-rays if my 5yr old hadnt of had them we probably wouldnt have known that he had navicular and how bad it was and he would have been suffering for longer. What would we do without all these technologies, would you expect hospitals to not operate with these!!!!

If you went in to hospital with a suspected fracture how would you know if it was and the extent without an x-ray?????!!!!!

 

[pottamus]

Hey! I am not saying that we should be without these things at all...I was merely throwing the subject up for debate because I was interested in others views.
Of course I understand that we cannot do without them and that they have a valued purpose in diagnostics of lameness. But I felt that lameness appears on the face of it to be increasing and so to, does the use of these technologies...I was merely exploring whether there was a link and whether people felt that these technologies were brought in a 'bit quick' in the assessments...

 

[GTs]

The reasons these are so popular is because people want instant answers/fixes. I am not sure the reason for seeing more lameness, but I would cerainly say that people rush recovery/getting back into work. I know a girl whose horse was off for 2 months for lameness, and 2 weeks back into work jumping the greeny 3' 6. I would also say people worry to much, and we all know I firmly believe if you worry bad things happen, if you do not you will be fine!!!

 

[Theresa_F]

Personally I think they are a good idea as they can get often get to the root of a problem faster than waiting to see if things go right in time as we used to do in the good old days.

Cairo had been lame for 2 weeks and we were not sure whether it was his shoulder or below the fetlock. From the way he moved it could have been either. Nerve blocks proved it was below the fetlock.

Vet then carried out x-rays which showed that he had changes to the coffin joint and pedal bone and was able to accurately back his opinion that he had lower ringbone.

I did not have insurance cover - he is too old, but I was happy to pay £400 for this treatment to find out what was going on with him as fast as possible.

 

[OWLIE185]

In the 35 years that I have owned horses for I have seen a dramatic improvement in veterinary care of horses. When I first started it was rare to see a horse over 15 years old. Fortunately the money from the horse racing industry has fiiltered itself in to far better diagnostic equipment and treatments of horses.

You ask why we see so much more lameness these days. I suspect we are more able to identify lameness and possibly also show more consideration to the well being of horses.

However I must say that I believe horses are not regularly hacked out anymore and spend far to much time in their stables or in the menage. In my opinion hacking out is good both physically and mentally for horses and it is a shame that so many owners these days deny this to their horses. I believe that much of the lameness we see today is due to too much dressage work or being worked in the restricted area of a menage.