Abstract: The analgesic effect of cryotherapy in an induced lameness model was evaluated. Lameness was induced with solar pressure from a custom-made shoe in a 10-horse, cross-over study. The degree of lameness was recorded with a commercial non-invasive inertial sensor. The distal limbs were maintained in an ice and water slurry (cryotherapy) or at ambient temperature (control) for 1 hour. Lameness was assessed serially over the following hour. Lameness at each time point was compared to the baseline induced lameness, within and between groups. Lameness had improved significantly in all horses 5 minutes after treatment but remained improved 10 minutes after treatment for the cryotherapy group only. Fifteen minutes after treatment, lameness in the cryotherapy group was improved relative to the control. Cryotherapy produced moderate, transient analgesia. Additional research is required to determine if altering the method, duration, or temperature of cryotherapy, as well as the targeted pathology and anatomy, alters the analgesic effect. . L’effet analgésique de la cryothérapie dans un modèle de boiterie induite a été évalué. La boiterie a été induite par une pression sur la sole à l’aide d’un fer sur mesure dans une étude croisée de 10 chevaux. Le degré de boiterie a été enregistré avec un capteur inertiel non invasif du commerce. Les membres distaux ont été maintenus dans une bouillie de glace et d’eau (cryothérapie) ou à température ambiante (témoin) pendant 1 heure. La boiterie a été évaluée en série au cours de l’heure suivante. La boiterie à chaque moment a été comparée à la boiterie induite au départ, au sein et entre les groupes. La boiterie s’était améliorée de manière significative chez tous les chevaux 5 minutes après le traitement mais restait améliorée 10 minutes après le traitement pour le groupe cryothérapie uniquement. Quinze minutes après le traitement, la boiterie dans le groupe cryothérapie était améliorée par rapport au témoin. La cryothérapie a produit une analgésie modérée et transitoire. Des recherches supplémentaires sont nécessaires pour déterminer si la modification de la méthode, de la durée ou de la température de la cryothérapie, ainsi que la pathologie et l’anatomie ciblées, modifient l’effet analgésique.(Traduit par D Serge Messier).
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This study examined the pain-relieving effects of cryotherapy (cold therapy) in a model of induced lameness in horses.
Methodology
The researchers implemented an experimental design involving 10 horses.
Lameness, or difficulty or abnormality in walking, was induced in these horses through solar pressure from a specially made shoe.
The degree of lameness in the horses was measured using a non-invasive inertial sensor.
The horses’ lower limbs were then subjected to either a mixture of ice and water (known as cryotherapy) or kept at room temperature (the control group) for a duration of one hour.
The researchers then serially assessed lameness over the next hour, comparing lameness at each time point to the horsess baseline induced lameness. This was done both within and between groups (cryotherapy vs. control).
Results and Insights
The study found that lameness significantly improved in all horses 5 minutes post treatment. This improvement was maintained 10 minutes post treatment in the cryotherapy group only.
Fifteen minutes after treatment, lameness in the cryotherapy group was noticeably improved when compared with the control group.
Therefore, cryotherapy appears to produce a moderate and temporary pain-relieving effect.
Future Research Implications
The research concluded that further studies are necessary to determine whether adjusting the cryotherapy method, duration, or temperature can alter its analgesic (pain-relieving) effect.
Additionally, further investigation is required to understand whether the targeted pathology (disease condition) and anatomy (body part treated) also influence cryotherapy’s analgesic effects.
Cite This Article
APA
Quam V, Yardley J, Quam M, Paz C, Belknap J.
(2021).
Cryotherapy provides transient analgesia in an induced lameness model in horses.
Can Vet J, 62(8), 834-838.
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, The Ohio State University, 601 Vernon L. Tharp Street, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA (V Quam, Yardley, Belknap); Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå 901 87, Sweden (M Quam); Department of Veterinary Clinics and Surgery, College of Veterinary, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), 6627 Av. Antônio Carlos, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901 Brazil (Paz).
Yardley, Jonathan
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, The Ohio State University, 601 Vernon L. Tharp Street, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA (V Quam, Yardley, Belknap); Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå 901 87, Sweden (M Quam); Department of Veterinary Clinics and Surgery, College of Veterinary, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), 6627 Av. Antônio Carlos, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901 Brazil (Paz).
Quam, Mikkel
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, The Ohio State University, 601 Vernon L. Tharp Street, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA (V Quam, Yardley, Belknap); Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå 901 87, Sweden (M Quam); Department of Veterinary Clinics and Surgery, College of Veterinary, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), 6627 Av. Antônio Carlos, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901 Brazil (Paz).
Paz, Cahuê
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, The Ohio State University, 601 Vernon L. Tharp Street, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA (V Quam, Yardley, Belknap); Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå 901 87, Sweden (M Quam); Department of Veterinary Clinics and Surgery, College of Veterinary, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), 6627 Av. Antônio Carlos, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901 Brazil (Paz).
Belknap, James
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, The Ohio State University, 601 Vernon L. Tharp Street, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA (V Quam, Yardley, Belknap); Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå 901 87, Sweden (M Quam); Department of Veterinary Clinics and Surgery, College of Veterinary, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), 6627 Av. Antônio Carlos, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901 Brazil (Paz).
MeSH Terms
Analgesia / veterinary
Animals
Cross-Over Studies
Cryotherapy / veterinary
Horse Diseases / therapy
Horses
Lameness, Animal / therapy
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