Injection of corticosteroids, hyaluronate, and amikacin into the navicular bursa in horses with signs of navicular area pain unresponsive to other treatments: 25 cases (1999-2002).

The study examines the effects of injecting a combination of drugs into the navicular bursa of horses that displayed symptoms of navicular area pain which didn’t improve with other treatments. The study found that 80% of the horses got relief and went back to normal activities after treatment.

Methods of research

• The study was retrospective in nature, and featured 25 horses which had failed to respond satisfactorily to corrective shoeing and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for their navicular area pain.
• Information such as each horse’s signalment, history, usage, severity and duration of lameness, shoeing regimen, results of diagnostic anesthesia, radiographic abnormalities, and outcome were collected from medical records.

Results

• Out of the 25 horses, 17 experienced bilateral forelimb lameness, 7 manifested unilateral forelimb lameness, and one showed unilateral hind limb lameness. The average duration of the lameness across all horses was 9.2 months.
• Eighteen of the horses had previously been treated with an injection of corticosteroids and sodium hyaluronate into the distal interphalangeal joint. Fourteen horses had mismatched front feet. All horses showed pain when pressure was applied over the central aspect of the frog.
• Palmar digital nerve anesthesia resulted in significant improvement or complete resolution of the lameness in all horses. Following navicular bursa treatment, 20 horses (80%) were sound and returned to their intended activities within 2 weeks. The average duration of soundness following treatment was 4.6 months.

Conclusion from the study

• The results suggest that navicular bursa treatment may provide temporary relief for horses suffering from chronic navicular area pain that doesn’t respond to other treatments.
• However, two horses that received multiple navicular bursa injections experienced a rupture of the deep digital flexor tendon at the level of the pastern region, suggesting a potential risk associated with this treatment.