Here are a few stifle facts from other resources...
- The menisci are disks that lie between joints in the stifle. Meniscal tears of the stifle heal very slowly because they have even less blood supply than other tendons/ligaments.
- Some horses with stifle pain tend to stand with the stifle rotated out
- Mild lameness is usually accentuated by ridden exercise, especially when the rider sits on the diagonal of the lame limb.
- Most humans tear or rupture the cruciate ligaments. This particular injury is rare in horses, which are much more likely to tear or injure the meniscal structures in the joint.
Diagnosis and management of acute stifle injury in adult horses in In Practice Sept 2008.
Inside the equine stifle from DVM News
Lameness may hinge on the stifle from Thoroughbred Times
Stifle in Adams lameness in horses.
Arthroscopy for meniscal tears from The Horse
Meniscal tears in horses from Michigan State University Veterinary Medical School.
Stifle disease from Burlington Equine
Meniscal injury and stifle lameness from Horseandhound.com
Diagnosis and treatment of stifle injuries from The Horse
Diagnosing stifle disease from The Horse
Lameness Associated with the Stifle and Pelvic Regions Proceedings of the Annual Convention of the AAEP 2002.
Treating stifle injuries from The Horse
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This happened to me just this winter. I tore my miniscus from playing Wii. My orthopod called it Wii Knee. They gave me a brace and it was better in a manner of days. I suspect it takes a horse a lot longer to heal. They probably don't get it from playing Wii.
ReplyDeleteExcellent references..Good blog! Enjoyed my visit.
ReplyDeleteJulie
www.ridingaside.blogspot.com
Interesting information! I know what a cruciate ligament is because I ruptured mine when I was 25 while dancing. Sounded like a gunshot, seriously! And my leg seemed fine afterwards, except for a little swelling, so I didn't go to the doctor immediately which turned out to be a mistake because if you let a ligament shrink it's much harder to repair. Just because you can walk on it doesn't mean it's good. So if you ever mess up your knee, don't wait around to decide if it's going to be fine, get it looked at.
ReplyDeleteI've had a draft mare with stifles that made popping noises but she was never lame so the vet said not to worry about it. Her daughter had the same deal. Never had a horse lame because of stifle problems. More than my fair share of splints and bowed tendons (off the track TBs come with those a lot) but not stifles.
Oh stifles! My gelding has bilateral cysts at the base of the femur. I am astounded at how even minor unevenness and pain can dramatically effect his whole body. All the way up to his teeth! His rehabilitation has been a very slow process, but I am in no rush! But practically every month, we are discovering the various ways this issue has effected him.
ReplyDeleteMy first horse got kicked in the stifle.
ReplyDeleteThe first vet told me he broke something and he'd never be ridable. First time I'd ever wanted to punch someone in the face. She didn't x-ray or anything.
Second vet said he'd be fine, but it'd be a slow process. And she was right.
It took him about 6 months of stall rest before we could let him out on small walks and build him up. He recovered from it and we were back jumping 2'6"+ fences again.
I have to say it's not a great site for injury, because you can't do anything but rest for them. No wraps or anything. I see they have these new slings for them, but too late for my gelding now.