Week 1 with East West Equine Sports Medicine

Hello everyone,
My name is Kaity Denney and I am a rising second year at MSU CVM. I am so excited to be an Equine Summer Fellow this summer!

I am spending 4 weeks in Traverse City, MI with East West Equine Sports Medicine. There are 3 doctors on staff, Dr's Duncan Peters, Lori Bidwell, and Matt LeShaw. I just finished up my first week working with them. They are the official vets for the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival, which is a hunter-jumper show. I work Monday-Saturday with them, from roughly 8 am until 9 pm. The doctors also respond to various emergencies during the night. My experience so far has been rewarding and enjoyable. Although we work long hours, the time really does fly by because we are incredibly busy and I am learning so much.

All of the patients are sports horses, so we do a ton of lameness exams. Each lameness exam consists of watching the horse walk and trot in a figure 8, on a straight line, and then usually on a lunge line. Then the doctor flexes one joint and then watches the horse trot off to see if the flexion exacerbated the lameness. The doctor will use hoof testers on each foot to apply pressure to try and see if they can find a spot that the horse is sensitive on. After the doctor has localized the lameness to one leg, they will them use a nerve block to find which part of the leg the lameness is in. The blocks start at the lower leg and then the doctor will block further up as they go. The doctors use mepivacaine (which is similar to lidocaine) as a local anesthetic. They will inject the nerve, let the horse hang out for about 5 minutes (the time it takes for the drug to take effect) and then will poke the area with a pen to make sure the block worked. Then we watch the horse trot again. If the lameness is better than the doctor knows that region is where the pain is and can treat appropriately. I have learned that if there is a sudden lameness, then you want to watch the horse trot, but do not block it before you take x-rays. This is because if you block the nerve and their is a fracture and you make the horse trot they will sometimes fracture it more.

The doctors also use a handy dandy portable digital radiography unit to check for any bone issues in the legs like arthritis, bone spurs, or fractures. They also use a portable ultrasound to check for soft tissue damage. I have gotten to help with x-rays and ultrasounds. Dr. Peters is an amazing teacher and walks me through what the gray blobs on the ultrasound are and shows me the difference between normal and abnormal.

The most common issues that I have seen so far have been front leg issues including front fetlock (similar to the human ankle) issues, abscesses in the hoof, coffin bone (similar to the bone in the tip of the human finger) fractures, and tendon/ligament damage.

Many of these issues are treated with rest, NSAIDs for pain and anti-inflammation, and steroids to decrease inflammation. The doctors also recommend horses go to equine rehabilitation centers to strength weak muscle groups to try and prevent further damage.

I have had any amazing first week learning all about hunter-jumpers, horse show life, and equine sports medicine. I have more stories to tell, but I will save those for next week so my posts aren't too long. I am so grateful for the doctors and staff at East West Equine Sports Medicine for their patience with me while I learn. Also shout out to Dr. Bidwell for all of the burritos she has bought me to keep me going during the long days. Until next week :)

Kaity

P.S. My advice if working with Equine Sports Medicine vets is to wear tons of sunscreen and always have chapstick with you.