LAMENESS
BETTER TARGET TREATMENT
DDFT Lesions in the Pastern Frequently Associated with Distal Pathology
A horse with a deep digital flexor tendon
(DDFT) lesion of the pastern is likely to have concurrent DDFT lesions in other areas of the foot that warrant further assessment for concurrent tendinopathy,” explained Elizabeth V. Acutt, BSc, BVSc, a resident in equine diagnostic imaging at Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Identifying these lesions allows the veterinarian to target treatment, which may improve the horse’s outcome, she explained at the 67th Annual Convention and Tradeshow of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, held in Nashville, Tenn.
B y 4
Issue 2/2022 | ModernEquineVet.com
M a r i e
“We know that deep digital flexor tendon injury is common in equine athletes, and it occurs in a large proportion of horses that present to us for diagnostic imaging of the distal limb,” Dr. Acutt said. In addition, the injuries can occur at several points throughout the length of the tendon. To get an idea of how many horses with DDFT pastern injuries had concurrent tendinopathy and to determine whether different pastern lesion types would be more likely to be concurrent with other lesions, Dr. Acutt and her colleagues at Colorado State performed a medical record search and identified
R o s e n t h a l ,
M S
