Mitchell favors Adequan® IM, which is injected into the muscle. Polysulfated glycosaminoglycan, or PSGAG (Adequan® IA), to help stimulate cartilage repair, restore synovial lubrication, and inhibit enzymes that attack cartilage and synovial fluid. Current options include:Ĭorticosteroids, which have powerful anti-inflammatory properties There is an array of products that can be injected into the space between one or more affected hock joints (called an intra-articular, or IA, injection). If a lameness examination indicates that your horse indeed is experiencing discomfort in one or more hock joints, your veterinarian may recommend proceeding with the injection process. Before your veterinarian can discuss treatment options, the source of the discomfort must be pinpointed. That’s part of the reason a thorough lameness examination is step 1 in addressing any suspected hock issue, Mitchell says. “You can have horrible x-ray changes, and the horse is fine,” he says, “and vice versa: where you can have very little changes or no changes, and it’s bothering the horse.” Like Mitchell, Snyder is a former US Equestrian Team veterinarian, caring for US horses at Olympic Games, World Equestrian Games, and other major championships.Īlthough changes on hock radiographs tend to worry horse owners, Snyder says that hock disease does not always match the pictures. ACVS, an international sport-horse veterinarian based out of Circle Oak Equine, Petaluma, CA. Hock issues can run the gamut: from so slight that it’s just a feeling that the horse is off, to noticeable inflammation, radiographic changes, a positive flexion test during a lameness exam, or some combination of the latter, says Jack Snyder, DVM, PhD, Dipl. Issues in the tarsocrural joint, also known as the tibio-tarsal joint, can include osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) lesions, which produce inflammation and soreness related to developing synovitis and fluid swelling (“bog spavin”), Mitchell says.ĭiagnosing Hock Problems Bones of the left hock as seen from the lateral (left) side and from the front. “Other issues may occur related to collateral and intertarsal ligament strain that may also lead to discomfort and/or arthritic changes,” Mitchell adds. ACVSMR, of Fairfield Equine Associates, Newtown, CT. These smaller joints are considered low-motion joints.ĭespite the fact that the smaller joints don’t move much, most hock OA is found in the lower two hock joints-the distal intertarsal and the tarsal-metatarsal-says Rick Mitchell, DVM, MRCVS, Dipl. From top to bottom, the three smaller joints are the proximal intertarsal joint, the distal intertarsal joint, and the tarsal-metatarsal joint. The tarsocrural joint, a high-motion joint at the top of the hock, is the largest joint in the hock (see illustration below). That’s right: There’s not just one “hock joint.” The horse’s hock (the tarsus, in veterinary terms) consists of four joints, any one (or more) of which may be a source of discomfort. No joint injection is risk-free, however, and not all experts are on board with the idea of regularly scheduled hock injections as “maintenance.” For this article, we asked two well-known sport-horse veterinarians to explain the benefits and potential drawbacks of hock injections, as well as for guidance in determining when-or if-they might help your horse feel and perform better. To combat the resulting stiffness and pain, some horse owners routinely have the joints injected, usually with steroids or other anti-inflammatories, with substances designed to improve joint function, or with some combination of these. The stresses of athletic performance can lead to inflammation and osteoarthritis (OA) in the hock joints. But over time we learn which parts of the horse’s body are prone to wear and tear-and because of the demands that dressage places on the horse’s hindquarter joints, for many riders and horse owners, the hocks wind up being the usual suspects. If only our horses could talk and tell us where it hurts, we’d no longer have to guess what might be causing them to feel “off” when we ride, or why those frustrating performance problems have started happening. Reprinted from the September 2018 USDF Connection magazine For some, it’s routine “maintenance.” Should it be? This procedure is common in dressage horses.
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