Using Cryotherapy to Prevent Colitis-Associated Laminitis

Researchers found that horses with evidence of colitis that received preventive cryotherapy were 10 times less likely to develop laminitis than horses that did not receive ice.
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Holcombe said the advantages of using cryotherapy include not only the compelling study results on its efficacy, but also its safety for the horse. | Photo: Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital
In recent studies, researchers have confirmed the benefits of using cryotherapy (cold therapy, or digital hypothermia) to treat acute laminitis. The technique’s anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects help prevent the laminar failure (when the laminae anchoring the coffin bone within the hoof fail to support the bone) characteristic of this devastating hoof disease.

But does this mean veterinarians can use cryotherapy to prevent laminitis from developing in at-risk horses in the first place? Susan Holcombe, VMD, MS, PhD, Dipl. ACVS, Dipl. ACVECC, a professor in the Michigan State University (MSU) Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, believes so. She presented the results of a recent study she performed on colitis cases at the 2013 International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot, held Nov. 1-3 in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Colitis is an infection of the colon that can lead to sepsis-associated laminitis. Holcombe said she has seen many colitis cases come through MSU clinic doors over the years, and often the only thing that prevented her from saving these horses was their development of laminitis.

“We started icing these horses’ limbs thanks to the original research of Drs. Chris Pollitt (BVSc, PhD) and Andrew van Eps (BVSc, PhD, MACVSc, Dipl. ACVIM),” she explained. “It seemed to help, but does it prevent laminitis in horses at risk of sepsis-associated laminitis? Our aim was to determine the effect of ice on the development of laminitis in horses diagnosed with colitis

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Alexandra Beckstett, a native of Houston, Texas, is a lifelong horse owner who has shown successfully on the national hunter/jumper circuit and dabbled in hunter breeding. After graduating from Duke University, she joined Blood-Horse Publications as assistant editor of its book division, Eclipse Press, before joining The Horse. She was the managing editor of The Horse for nearly 14 years and is now editorial director of EquiManagement and My New Horse, sister publications of The Horse.

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