Veterinary Orthopaedic and diagnostic assessment Flashcards
Describe a hands off assessment
History
Static evaluation
Dynamic assessment
What kind of questions might you ask (general)?
Age, breed & sex
Behaviour
General medical history
Vaccinations
Is the animal on any medications?
Allergies
Insurance status
What kind of questions might you ask (orthopaedic focused)?
Acute or chronic?
Has it happened before? Intermittent/continuous
If intermittent, how long does each ‘attack’ last? Does anything seem to trigger it?
History of injury/wounds in the area?
When was the horse last shod?
When was it noticed?
Describe a hands on assessment
Palpation and manipulation
Flexion tests
Regional anaesthesia +/- ancillary tests
What should you consider regarding the posture?
Are they evenly weightbearing?
Is one leg being carried?
Are they shifting weight?
What is their head position?
Is there hyperflexion or hyperextension of joints?
Are there any angular limb deformities?
What is their spinal posture?
How may symmetry be beneficial during an examination?
Muscle atrophy
Muscle hypertrophy
Swellings
Angular limb deformity
What environmental considerations should you make when carrying out an examination?
Enclosed
Sufficient light
Sufficient space
Distractions
Guideline
What assessments can you carry out to aid the examination?
Walk vs trot
Variety of directions - straight line & circle (both directions)
Variety of surfaces - hard & soft
Ridden assessments can be useful
Describe the UK lameness scoring system
0 - Sound
2 - Lameness hard to detect at walk or trot
4 - Lameness barely detectable at walk, easy to see at trot
6 - Lameness easily detectable at walk
8 - Hobbling at walk, unable/unwilling to trot
10 - Non-weight bearing
Describe the AAEP lameness scoring system
0 - Lameness not perceivable under any circumstances
1 - Lameness difficult to observe and not consistently present
2 - Lameness is difficult to observe at walk or trot in a straight line but can be consistently apparent under certain circumstances (ridden, circling etc)
3 - Lameness consistently observable at trot under all circumstances
4 - Lameness is obvious at walk
5 - Minimal weight bearing in motion or at rest or complete inability to move.
Describe other signs you may see if the animal has forelimb lameness
Head nod - nod on the sound leg
Ear bounce - as ears bounce up, that’s the lame leg
Head position - if lunging horse, if lame leg is on the inside, head will aim outwards
Describe other signs you may see if the animal has hindlimb lameness
Pelvic rise - lame limb may show greater amount of movement
Foot placement - hind limb should hit where forelimb was placed when walking. If falls short, may be lame
Toe dragging
Degree of joint flexion
Describe non-specific limb signs of lameness
Foot fall - can you hear the difference
Stride length and character
Tail position
What is referred lameness?
‘False lameness’
The animal tries to compensate by taking weight off of lame foot, which can make a different foot look lame instead
Describe secondary lameness
‘True’ lameness
Due to prolonged overloading
Referred -> secondary
Multiple limbs makes it difficult
Use ancillary tests!
What should you palpate?
Sequence to ensure no omissions
Relevant anatomy
- Ligaments
- Tendons
- Joints
- Bony prominence’s
Swellings
Pain
What are the two types of reduced ROM?
Mechanical
Painful
Describe a flexion test
Exacerbate lameness
Limb held in tight flexion (approx. 1 minute)
Horse is immediately trotted 12-15m
A positive result is a more pronounced lameness compared to before the test
Not very specific as cannot confirm exactly what joint as will be flexing more than one joint at a time
