When Ringbone isn’t Ringbone

Canadian veterinarians working with colleagues from the U.K. and U.S. described 19 cases of a sudden acute lameness condition that could be confused with ringbone. Unlike ringbone, which is typically a slowly progressive arthritis affecting the pastern or coffin joints, the condition described here is a relatively acute (sudden) proliferation of bone on the dorsal aspect of the long pastern (P2) associated with an often severe lameness.

Affected horses ranged in age from 7-20 years, with mares and geldings affected. Warmbloods and horses described as “jumpers” were most common. Most of the horses (79%) had a forelimb lameness duration of 1 week or less. A specific incident during exercise or turnout thought to have caused trauma to the area was reported for about half of these. Eighty-four percent of the cases had a visible and palpable hard swelling on P2, and all had evidence of bone proliferation visible on X-rays that often progressed rapidly over the course of a few weeks to 2 months. A variety of treatments were tried, including rest, anti-inflammatory medications, localized injections, shock wave therapy and surgery, but 68% of the horses ended up being euthanized for persistent lameness, and only one horse returned to its previous level of activity.

— Fowlie JG et al. EVE 2026;38:26-36. DOI:10.1111/eve.14148

Venography for Hard-to-Find Subsolar Abscesses

In a pair of articles discussing the use of venography to locate hard-to-find subsolar abscesses, veterinarians and farriers from the U.S. and Canada describe the advantages of the technique.

…