Island Life Magazine Ltd April/May 2011 | Page 106

the rider

Island Life - April/May 2011

Equine Veterinary Diary

Laminitis a concern
for all seasons
Leire Ruiz MVDr CertAVP MRCVS

Main photo: Donkey with laminitis in the front feet shifting his weight onto the hind feet
to alleviate the pressure. Inset: “Laminitic rings” in a horse with laminitis. This term refers
to the abnormal hoof growth of a chronic laminitis sufferer.

Anybody involved in the equestrian
world has heard of the term laminitis
at some point. Spring was traditionally
the worst time of the year for laminitis
but now it is seen throughout the entire
year.
This condition is characterized for
causing excruciating foot pain. Most
commonly it tends to affect the front
feet but can affect only one foot or
even all four feet at the same time. This
makes life very difficult for the horse
as it tries to shift weight onto the less
painful foot. If they are all painful, the
only option is to lie down.
Laminitis is the most common
cause of foot lameness and accounts
for between 7.5 and 15.7% of all
lameness’s in the country.
The treatment of laminitis has
remained consistent for many years
with the main aim being to decrease
pressure in the painful part of the foot,
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while providing support to the bones
within the feet to prevent further
damage.
There are many well recognized causes
of laminitis including concussion,
blood poisoning, eating too many
concentrates and grazing rich pasture.
We have been aware of these for many
years and have tried to prevent them,
yet the number of laminitic horses
seems to be on the rise.
There are two disorders of the
endocrine system (organs responsible
for the regulation of hormones), that
are increasingly being diagnosed as
the cause of laminitis in the majority
of cases. These conditions are Equine
Cushing’s disease and Equine Metabolic
Syndrome.
Equine cushing’s disease
Equine Cushing’s disease is a disorder
of the endocrine system and is caused

by an enlargement of a gland located
on the back of the brain. Normally this
gland produces a variety of hormones
but when it is enlarged, and therefore
not functioning properly, it releases an
excessive amount of hormones into the
blood stream. One such hormone is
ACTH which causes other glands (near
the kidneys) to produce an abnormal
amount of natural steroid (cortisol).
This excessive amount of natural steroid
causes all the symptoms we can see in a
horse with Cushing’s.
As horses are living longer the number
of cases is on the rise. Cushing’s disease
has traditionally been associated with
older horses, however research has
revealed that younger horses than
previously thought are also suffering
from it. A few years back horses less
than 20 years old were thought to
be extremely unlikely to have this
condition, now we regularly see horses

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