Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Generalized medullary infarction of the long bones in a horse.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 1993
- Authors:
- Fenger, C K et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Clinical Sciences · United States
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 12-year-old Tennessee Walking Horse mare was diagnosed with a condition called generalized medullary infarction, which means there were areas of dead bone tissue in her long bones. She had been shifting her weight on her back legs and kicking for about six weeks. During the examination, the vet noticed some swelling in her knee joint and that she reacted when pressure was applied to her long bones. X-rays showed some unusual changes in the bone structure, and a biopsy confirmed that the bone marrow was damaged. While the exact cause of this condition wasn't clear, it might be related to stress on the bones from a mild hormone imbalance and some unknown inflammation. The outcome of the treatment is not specified in the abstract.
Abstract
Generalized medullary infarction of the long bones was diagnosed in a 12-year-old Tennessee Walking Horse mare. The mare was referred after a 6-week course of shifting weight on her hind limbs, and kicking. Physical examination revealed mild stifle joint distention and withdrawal reactions to digital pressure over the long bones. Radiography revealed patchy areas of medullary sclerosis in the distal portion of each femur and proximal portion of each tibia. A full-thickness cortical and cancellous tibial biopsy revealed infarcted bone marrow, with cortical and periosteal osteonecrosis. The cause of the intramedullary infarction could not be determined, but might have been attributable to cumulative bone stress resulting from mild primary hyperparathyroidism and some unidentified inflammatory factor.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8449806/