Transcript Wobblers in horses

WOBBLERS SYNDROME IN
HORSES
Marissa Kazeck
What is Wobblers Syndrome?
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Wobblers Syndrome is a neurological condition in younger horses that
results in abnormal neurological control of the limbs.
The most common is termed cervical vertebral malformation (CVM) and is
characterized by malformation or compression of the spinal cord, which
leads to spasticity, ataxia, and incoordination. There are two distinct types
of CVM:
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Cervical vertebral instability (CVI): causes dynamic spinal cord compression, typically
affects horses from 4-12 months of age.
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Malformation occurs mostly at C3-4 and C4-5
Cervical static stenosis (CSS): characterized by a closing of the cervical canal causing
compression on the spinal cord, typically affects horses between 12 to 36 months of age.
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Malformation occurs mostly at C5-6 and C6-7
What causes this?
The exact cause of wobbler syndrome in horses is unknown. There are several factors
that it is believed to be caused by:
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Genetic predisposition
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Nutritional imbalances
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Rapid growth
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Physical trauma
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Work or excessive exercise on immature bones
The cervical vertebrae are supposed to protect the spinal cord while allowing
for normal movement of the neck. With wobbler syndrome, these bones have
grown in such a way as to compress the spinal cord and cause both degeneration
of the cord and signs of neurological impairment in the function of the limbs. The
spinal cord seems to grow out of the small space left inside the deformed
vertebrae.
What horses are affected?
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Breeds most commonly affected:
 Thoroughbred
 Quarter
Horse
 Morgan
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Males out number females three to one
Horses that gain weight rapidly during their first
two years of life.
Clinical Signs
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Noticeable incoordination (ataxia): occurs because of the malformed or
compressed vertebrae on the spinal cord, interferes with messages being sent
by the brain = interference with normal nerve transmission from brain to legs.
Usually seen in the hind quarters.
Weight loss
Weakness
“Wobbler’s heel”: occurs when the horse is in the advanced stages of the
syndrome and incoordination is evident. Characterized by the horse reaching
forward with the back foot and lacerating the bulbs of the hell on the front
foot.
Falling down
Clinical signs may appear suddenly or gradually, horse may show periods of slight
improvement but will never recover if treatment is not performed.
Diagnosis
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Diagnosis of spinal cord damage requires quality radiographs of the cervical
region.
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Radiographs will reveal signs of lipping, flaring, evidence of lesion or stenosis of the vertebrae
to indicate whether the horse is suffering from CVM.
Sometimes it is necessary to resort to a myelographic (dye) study in order to
isolate the exact location or locations of spinal cord compression.
Other ways to diagnosis include:
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Turning the horse in a small circle: horse will swing his rear legs out as he turns
Backing the horse: instead of using their back up, the horse will back up with their front legs until
they get into an awkward position and they will hop backwards with their rear legs.
Sway test: one person walks the horse away while another person grabs the tail and pulls the
horse to one side. A normal horse will allow you to do that and then correct itself, however a
horse with wobblers cannot tell where his limbs are and its easy to pull him over to one side.
Pictures and Video
Appearance of cervical
vertebra from a horse
affected with cervical
stenotic myelopathy
Radiographic appearance of severe
cervical vertebral malformation
Backing the horse to test
for wobblers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aTJFfUnae
A&feature=related
Appearance of a cervical
vertebra from a horse
affected with cervical
stenotic myelopathy. Note
the asymmetrical
appearance of the
articulation
More pictures….
Placement Test
Tail sway
Tight Circles
“A”- will show the Atlas
occipital joint to C2/C3
“B”- will show C2 to C4
“C”- will show C4 to C7
Cassette Placement
Using a software program with
the radiographs, the cord ratio
measurements are taken. These
ratios help objective assessment
of narrow spinal canal.
Treatment
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Horses with this syndrome can be treated in different ways
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Drug therapy
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Drugs directed at the spinal cord inflammation to decrease the nerve tissue
swelling and intracranial pressure
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Surgery
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Fuses the vertebrae
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Mannitol (0.5-1.0 g/kg, iv)
Dimethylsulfoxide (0.5 g/kg of a 40-50% solution, iv, diluted with isotonic fluids
given by gravity flow)
Furosemide
Involves drilling a hole between the affected vertebral bodies from underneath
the neck and inserting a stainless steel prosthesis called a “bagby basket” which
fuses and immobilized the vertebrae.
Aggressive management
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Nutritional imbalances
Prognosis
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Aggressive nutritional management and controlled exercise,
coupled with early diagnosis, have recently proven to produce
excellent results in the treatment of wobblers
The more ataxic the patients are the more likely there can be
recovery problems
Patience is the key in long term prognosis
Physical therapy and exercise is very important in the
rehabilitation period
The earlier noticed and treated = best results
Quiz
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What is Wobblers Syndrome?
List 2 causes of this.
T/F : Females out number males 4 to 1
List two signs of Wobblers
What are 3 test performed to diagnosis?
What are the 3 treatment options?
What is the most important part of the
rehabilitation period?
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http://www.petplace.com/horses/the-wobblersyndrome-wobbles/page2.aspx#
http://www.equinewobblers.com/#