Splints - your experiences please

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tigger01

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Vet is due to come out this afternoon to look at my gelding who has thrown a very large splint. Please give me your thoughts, rememdies, ideas, treatments etc - I'm particularly interested in shockwave treatment for splints. Is it worth the money? Also the use of magnetic wraps on them too.

Many thanks.
 
Bumped as my horse has just thrown a large splint next to his old one so he now has a double splint!
I am resting him to give it time to form, and my YO recommended compagel or something like that? (I can't remember the name of it) which I am getting from the vet.

The splint is rather unsightly now so any recommendations of how to reduce it (if at all possible) would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks
 
magnetic boots, lemon, cold hosing are the main things, if its hot cold hose it for as often as poss, lemom is good and i heard goose fat is good to but not tried that, keep them on soft ground while its forming so not to make it any bigger and be carefull how much work on hard ground you do in the future, like now the ground is sooo hard and dry don't go mad trotting and cantering for miles.
 
Our new boy retired from racing as had splint that was removed then threw another large one on other leg but vet said fine for our job but not racing. He is sound but it did flare up cos of messing on hard ground when arrived in new home so we had to rest him and apply compagel daily (same as tensolvet gel). If we pressed the splint and he reacted then still sore. he was fine in 10 days. The main issue is if the splint interfereswith thr suspensory ligament and if not and left to settle then susually casues no lameness in future but is aesthetically undesirable for showing etc.

Here is some useful research -
On each side of the cannon bone is a long narrow bone known as the splint bone. The splint bones start at the knee and taper as they descend on either side of the cannon bone, each ending in a small knob about two-thirds of the way to the ankle .

There are two main conditions which affect the splint bones. The term "splints" commonly refers to an inflammatory condition and a calcium lump on the bone, while the term "broken splint bone" refers to a fracture of the splint bone and a calcium lump where it is trying to heal. When lameness in this area occurs, the above conditions may be confused and need to be differentiated.

Cause of Splints
The ligament (interosseous ligament), tying the splint bones to the cannon bone, is quite elastic in young horses; however, as the horse ages, the ligament ossifies and is replaced by bone and the three bones fuse.

"Splints" are the direct result of an injury to the periostium (tissue covering the bone) or an injury to the interosseous ligament (tissue tying the splint bone to the cannon bone). These injuries to the horse may be the result of direct trauma, such as a kick or a concussion type trauma resulting from jumping, running or working. As the horse matures, the interosseous ligament slowly calcifies, fusing the splint bones to the cannon bone, allowing it to better withstand the concussion type trauma of working and the horse is therefore less likely to develop "splints". Most often, the forelimbs are affected; rarely do "splints" occur in the hindlimbs.

The majority of splint problems occur in the medial side (inside) of the forelimbs. The medial splint bone is the one usually affected, because it has a flat surface next to the knee. The lateral (outer) splint bone has a more slanted surface. When the weight is transmitted to these bones, the medial splint bone probably bears more weight than the lateral splint bone; therefore, the ligament between the medial splint bone and the cannon bone is subjected to more stress than the outer ligament.

Signs of "Splints"
Lameness due to "splints" is most common in two-year-old horses undergoing training. The lameness is most obvious while the horse is trotting, working or soon thereafter. Lameness may come and go or be present continuously for as long as a year.

If one palpates the leg along the side of the cannon bone and splint bone, the horse will exhibit a pain response when pressure is applied to an inflamed area. This might be a large swelling where ossification (calcium deposition) is already taking place or a very small swelling where ossification is just starting. It is important to note that there may be more than one splint forming on a horse at the same time. After the inflammation has totally subsided and the ossification is completed, the soreness usually disappears.

Treatment
Veterinarians use many different methods to treat "splints", but most would agree that the horse should be rested and placed on soft ground for at least 30 days. Veterinarians may use medications to help reduce inflammation and help prevent excessive bone growth, but ‘splints" may also heal without medication and treatment.

The outlook is good for most horses except those in which the bony growth is large and interferes with the knee joint or the suspensory ligament. Sometimes surgery may be helpful in these difficult conditions.

Signs, Diagnoses and Treatment
Radiographs are necessary for a positive diagnosis of a fractured splint bone and to differentiate it from "splints". Your veterinarian will decide on the course of treatment. Often the surgical removal of the distal fragment of the fractured splint is necessary; however, this may be unnecessary in cases in which good healing is progressing and minimal callous formation and lameness is present.
 
A horse on our yard has just been to the vets to have a large splint x-rayed and it turned out to be a stress fracture to the cannon bone and not a splint at all. Owner is having shockwave therapy on it and hopefully it will be ok.
 
iv heard that massageing in dog oil for 15 mins a day is good. I have been doing it for about 3 weeks and i have seen a difference.

My horses splint is a cold one, dont know if this makes a difference or not but anyway.. also i dont know if it is doing it on its own or is due to the massage? Im going to keep it up though.
My instructor did the same thing for a curb on his show horse and it compleatly went.
 
I think I have more experience with splints than to last of life time! Radiol Bone Embrocation is good for getting rid of them. THe shock wave therapy didn't do anything for us, one horse I know got it fired but although it is sound now (splint wasn't settling) it has an even bigger lump, but It is a racehorse so lumps and bumps don't matter. If the horse is not for showing, don't work until it sound then it will be fine. A splint has no effect really once it has settled (gone hard). As mja said it usually cause no problems, many event/racehorse (or horses doing hard work) have them and it never causes them lameness.
 
Mine has a splint - used homeopathy for what it was worth alongside radiol and ibuleve gel. It reduced dramatically but not completely - can just about get away with it in the showring :rolleyes:
 
I did my mare with Workalin working blister. You cant get it now but I had it left over from my previous horse. It took the splint down quite a bit and I am hoping that what is left will disappear over time.
 
Well my newly bought 4 yo managed to throw not 1 but 2 splints within about a fortnight yee haaing round the field! Luckily neither were large and he wasn't lame at all. Cold hosing certainly helped and 4 years on they have reduced in size to where you'd be struggling to see them. They have never caused him problems and he is now an intermediate eventer, so hope you will be lucky too. Many racehorses especislly NH horses have them with no ill effects so fingers crossed for your horse.
 
my nice lightweight had thrown one splint pre season and i was doing ok results wise but now she has thrown a second one on opposite leg :( I was hoping to sell her as show mare - in your opinion is she now un saleable as a show horse??
 
Hi,

Your vet will prob give you some DMSO and rec. cold hosing and wrapping. Once cold and fully formed a splint is no big deal, and most horses have at least one! (even if you can only feel it and not see it). Really nothing to be very worried about, if showing though it will mark you down, except in WH classes where little bumps like this are too be expected of a horse thats hunted. I am currently selling a 6yr old TB who has a large splint on his left fore, its formed and never been a problem in the 6 months I have had him, but the amount of people who are clueless and run scared is crazy! As I said most horses who have ben consistently worked will have some thing, esp if they aren't always booted or bandaged and are worked on hard ground.
 
My horse has recently developed a splint. It is very hard. Will massaging with radiol or something reduce it at all? Or is it too late now that it is hard. It is cold, and doesn't interfere with his knee movement and he is not, nor has ever been, lame with it.
 
It's just a reinforcement from excess wear and tear or a knock, once the swelling and heat has gone they are nothing to worry about at all. I love the Bone radiol stuff - as if a cream you rub on the skin dissolves bone!!!! - snake oil!!!!:D If it did work don't you think it would be used on humans to get rid of callouses after a break!!!!:D - makes me laugh though!!!
Only time and rest will reduce it!!!
A splint certainly wouldn't put me off buying a horse with one unless it was obviously down to its conformation/weird action - that would make me worried about general wear and tear as the horse ages and not the actual splint.
I've got a 2yr old gelding, who has a brain the size of a peanut and no self preservation sense at all!!, at the moment that has had a nasty kick we think to the outside of his cannon bone and it's huge but the swelling has gone right down after hosing everyday and he is almost sound on it again - looks awful at the moment though but will not be a problem again - bloody horses - vet bills with hooves!!!
 
See what your vet says as I thought my boy had thrown a splint not long ago, turns out he had quite badly bruised his SF tendon and it was an odema(sp) 6 weeks rest and walking in hand and he is almost good as new. Fingers crossed for you
 
my sisters horse threw a splint in middle of june.
been field rested and x-rayed and vet confirmed a simple splint.
heat reducing and now become sound.
but yesterday i applied pressure to splint (she used to flinch at slight touch) and she was sore with harder pressure. did that to both legs a few times. she then trotted of minorly lame. but sound again today. there was a bit of heat in it beforehand.
thats been 6 weeks rest now. how much longer is it likely to take??? i'm surprised she still so sensitive on it.
 
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