Arthritis in Horses

Arthritis in horses

Just like humans, the horse’s limb is made up of multiple joints which are prone to arthritis. Also known as Osteoarthritis or Degenerative Joint Disease, arthritis is a very common joint-related condition in horses, particularly those that are used for ridden work and competition. Joints in the horse that are most commonly affected by arthritis include the fetlock, hock and coffin joint.

What causes arthritis

Horse’s joints are made up of bone, cartilage and a joint capsule that surrounds it. The joint’s role is to lubricate the two joint surfaces when the horse moves and weight bears.

In a joint that moves abnormally, the cartilage begins to break down, resulting in fluid in the joint, also known as synovitis. The bone underneath becomes more brittle and in order to stabilize itself, it lays down new bone. On rare occasions, the two ends of the bone can fuse together.

Causes of arthritis include trauma, wear and tear and conformational issues that make the horse place additional stress on a joint. It can also develop in a joint that has suffered from an infection, bone fragments and Osteochondrosis (osteochondrosis dissecans; OCD).

Symptoms of arthritis

Symptoms of a horse with arthritis will differ depending on the severity of the condition.

Lameness
Heat in the joint
Swelling in the joint.
Stiffness
Horse takes longer to ‘loosen up’
Loss of performance

How is arthritis diagnosed

Diagnosis includes your vet watching your horse walk and trot to assess the level of lameness, and whether more than one limb is affected. Your vet may also perform a flexion test on the joints, nerve blocks, and for a more detailed diagnoses, they may use additional diagnostic tools such as X-rays, ultrasound and MRI.

Arthritis horse treatment

Treatment depends on the underlying cause of the arthritis, for example, if the primary cause is bone fragments, a meniscal tear or intra-articular fractures, keyhole surgery may be required.

There are then two main approaches to treating arthritis: S-MOADs (symptom-modifying osteoarthritic drugs) and D-MOADs (disease-modifying osteoarthritic drugs).

S-MOADs are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as Bute and Danilon which have a mild anti-inflammatory effect, but you can’t compete on these. Also widely used for arthritis in horses are steroid injections (Corticosteroids) which are a stronger anti-inflammatory that are effective at removing clinical signs but come with a risk of inducing laminitis.
D-MOADs, also known as Orthobiologicals, include IRAP (Interleukin One Receptor Antagonist Protein), PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma), Stem Cells, and Alpha-2-Macroglobulin. The idea is that they halt the progression and possibly even reverse arthritis in some cases. They are derived from taking blood samples or tissues from the horse, processing them and then injecting them into the joint. Horses can compete on them, but they are expensive and there is a risk of flares and infection.
Arthramid is an intra-articular polyacrylamide gel that improves the mobility of the joint.
Hyaluronic Acid (HA) is said to lubricate the soft tissues of the joint.

Managing arthritis

Alongside treatment, there are other things owners can do to help manage their horse’s arthritis. These include ensuring they are properly warmed up and cooled down before and after exercise to give the joints chance to prepare for and recover from exercise. It’s also important that an arthritic horse’s hooves and limbs are well balanced to reduce unnecessary load on the joints.

Keeping horses in a good body condition score will also help to minimise overloading the joints, as will being sensible about the surfaces you work on. A varied exercise routine is advised with plenty of core and fitness work.

Joint supplements

Many owners choose to feed their arthritic horses a joint supplement to help support the horse’s joints. With lots of supplements available on the market, it can be hard knowing which supplement is best for your horse, so look out for the following ingredients which can help to protect and care for your horse’s joints:-