Stifle op...opinions plz.

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squirrelc17

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Also in vet group.

Objective opinions whether for or against please.
My horse needs arthroscopy, lame behind...blocked to stifle. X-rays clean.
5 year old 17hh warm blood. Bought October 2013. Done very little work since. Jumped 10-15 times in last 10 months and no bigger than 90cm.
Really appreciate any thoughts/experiences people have.
 
Can you inject first? Depending on what is causing the lameness there might be a few options that mean an op isn't required.
Mine has OCD but through work, chiro/physio has only needed injections and no op needed.
Have you had your horse referred yet? Could be worth talking through options with a specialist before operating.
 
My 8 year old has just had it done. Novice dressage horse. Scans and xrays are all clear, tried injecting the joint but didn't work. Just come off two weeks box rest and having Cartrophen injections once a week. No problems at all, can't even see where the incisions were!
 
Before you go down the op route, have a look at Scenar treatment (look up Jill Hick Equine Scenar on Facebook). My horse had a very bad locking stifle problem, had some Scenar treatment, and has had NO further problems with the stifle. Definitely worth a look before you spend a lot on invasive surgery. Good luck with your horse, I hope you resolve it. X
 
My girl had it done in July. Just started walking I.e 4 days! She was slightly lame in a straight line but worse on a circle. X-rays/scans everything was clean. Nerve blocked etc.
I could of rested her but as nothing on the scans we decided to go for it. Roger smith from the RVC came to do it & scanned it first to check. When they got in there turned out she'd damaged her cartlidge & the rest was soft & inflamed she had these picked & cut away she also had a meniscal tear. Basically if she didn't have the op to be tided up she wouldn't of came sound. She looks pretty sound atm which is great :)
 
Pretty similar to the above post horse was performing poorly surgery was for investigation they fixed a miniscal tear and fixed locking stifles - followed by 4 months rest however this was now 8 months ago and I really don't think it made much difference horse is slightly happier under saddle and the stifles still lock - so not a great result.
 
I've got an 18 yr old who's had a sticky stifle since she was 2. We keep it under control through exercise - if it does stick, we back her and it clicks back in. I expect things have moved on since we discussed surgery - when she was 4 - but we were advised it might make arthritis more likely as she got older. It didn't stop her jumping over a metre, doing xc or affiliated dressage in her youth, and she still enjoys life now.
 
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