Foot Pain in Horses: Diagnosing Soft Tissue Problems (AAEP 2010)

When pain is localized to the foot but no abnormalties can be seen on radiographs (often called X rays), problems in soft tissues within the foot are often the culprit. However, imaging soft tissues in the foot to arrive at a diagnosis can be challenging, especially when magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is not available or financially feasible. At the 2010 American Association of Equine
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When pain is localized to the foot but no abnormalties can be seen on radiographs (often called X rays), problems in soft tissues within the foot are often the culprit. However, imaging soft tissues in the foot to arrive at a diagnosis can be challenging, especially when magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is not available or financially feasible. At the 2010 American Association of Equine Practitioners Convention, held Dec. 4-8 in Baltimore, Md., one veterinarian discussed the use of ultrasound as a lower-cost option for imaging soft tissue problems in the hoof.

Foot Ultrasound

There is a small hypoechoic (black) round lesion on the dorsal aspect of the lateral lobe (on the right of the image) of the tendon (arrow) visible in this transverse ultrasound images of the deep digital flexor tendon.

Denis Verwilghen, DVM, MSc, DES, Dipl. ECVS, specialist in equine and large animal surgery at the University of Liège in Belgium, discussed findings in 39 horses with this presentation, reporting that veterinarians using ultrasound examination were able to identify specific soft tissue problems in all cases. The most common issues were deep digital flexor tendon lesions (30 horses), followed by abnormalities in the coffin joint and associated ligaments (27 horses), and distension of the navicular bursa (22 horses)

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Written by:

Christy West has a BS in Equine Science from the University of Kentucky, and an MS in Agricultural Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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