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Back pain is an extremely common and performance-limiting problem in horses. When managing it, veterinarians have two main goals: stopping the pain and strengthening the horse.
Erin Contino, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVSMR, assistant professor of Equine Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation at Colorado State University, in Fort Collins, described treatment strategies and the science behind them during the 2020 American Association of Equine Practitioners Convention, held virtually.
Breaking the Pain Cycle
After a veterinarian makes an accurate diagnosis of what’s causing a horse’s back pain based on history, the physical and clinical exam, and imaging he or she can choose from a variety of modalities to control it. Contino listed some of the most common:
California Veterinarian: Looking Back, Voided Claim Rule Was First Step In Right Direction Sponsored by:
As the dust has (somewhat) settled from the high-profile spate of horse fatalities at Santa Anita Park in 2018-19, one California veterinarian said that the culture around injury prevention in the state has completely changed. Dr. Ryan Carpenter led a virtual panel discussion earlier this month as part of the 2020 American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention, gathering veterinarians from different disciplines to speak about how safety efforts have evolved in their sport in recent years.
Carpenter, who is a racetrack practitioner and orthopedic surgeon in Southern California, has spoken before about the shift from skepticism of new medication and veterinary regulation by horsemen and private veterinarians to a comfortable acceptance.