Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Injury to the origin of the gastrocnemius muscle as a possible cause of lameness in four horses.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 2001
- Authors:
- Swor, T M et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences · United States
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
Four horses were examined because they were limping on their back legs. Two of them showed a specific way of walking where their hocks turned outward and their toes turned inward while standing. Tests showed that all four horses had a problem in the lower part of their thigh bone, and three of them had changes visible on X-rays. They were all diagnosed with an injury to the starting point of the gastrocnemius muscle (a muscle in the back of the leg). Three of the horses were able to return to their athletic activities after resting and slowly getting back into exercise, but the fourth horse improved after five months of rest but became lame again when it started exercising again and was ultimately euthanized.
Abstract
Four horses were evaluated because of hind limb lameness. Two had a distinct gait abnormality at the walk characterized by lateral rotation of the point of the calcaneus and medial rotation of the toe during the stance phase. Nuclear scintigraphy revealed a focal area of intense radioisotope uptake in the caudodistal aspect of the femur in all 4 horses, and 3 of the horses had a corresponding proliferative reaction on the caudodistal cortex of the femur on radiographs. In all 4 horses, a diagnosis of injury to the origin of the gastrocnemius muscle was made. Three of the horses returned to athletic endeavors after an extended period of rest and a gradual return to exercise. The fourth improved after 5 months of rest but became lame again when returned to exercise and was euthanatized.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11469578/