Week 2 at East West Equine

Hello,
I just wrapped up my second week at East West Equine Sports Medicine. I am loving it so far! I have had a blast in beautiful Traverse City. We did more lameness exams this week, which are pretty similar to what I described in last weeks post. We did see some unique cases and I got to help Dr. Bidwell with acupuncture.
Horses colicing is not uncommon at the show. Colic is a general term for any abdominal discomfort a horse experiences. Colic's can have many causes, ranging from an impaction of feed material, gas colic, sand colic, strangulation of the gut, entrapment of the gut, or even when the gut ruptures. When Dr. Peters is called to respond to a colic situation he takes the horses temperature, listens to gut sounds (borborygmi is the fancy word for gut sounds and is wonderful for Scrabble), and gets a history of feed and medications from the owner. He will then do a rectal exam on the horse to feel for dissented loops of small intestine, to feel if the colon is caught between the kidney and spleen (a nephrosplenic entrapment), or to see if he can feel an impaction in the cecum or colon. He will usually also pass a nasogastric tube into the stomach to see if the horse will reflux. Depending on what he finds on the physical exam, the patient is either determined to be a medical colic or a surgical colic. If the horse needs surgery, then they will be shipped to my friends at Michigan State (about a 3.5 hour trail ride from TC). If they are a colic that can be treated at the show, we will give them NSAID (usually Banamine) for pain management, IV fluids, and sometimes fluids and electrolytes via the nasogastric tube. We have seen a few colics this week, one that did well with surgery at MSU and one that responded wonderfully to medical treatment at the show.
This week I also got to help Dr. Peters "float" a patients teeth. Floating is doing a comprehensive dental exam on a horse. Horses upper jaw (maxilla) is wider then their lower jaw (mandible) and they grind their feedstuffs by chewing laterally (side to side). Horse dentition is unique because their teeth grow continually. Because of how they chew and their teeth constantly growing, they can get "points" on their teeth. These points are painful and can impact how well they are able to eat. Dr. Peters will sedate the horse (usually with Xylazine and Dormosedan). He will then feel for points and unevenness of the patients teeth. After he finds the points he will use large files to file them off until everything is on an even plane again. This makes it much more comfortable for the horse to eat and improves their quality of life.
During the show the horses are all kept in stalls. They are big beasts and they can get bored in their stalls, so they occasionally get turned out into small paddocks. The weather has been a little cooler in TC and some of the geldings have been feeling spunky. One pony got his leg lodged in a round pen panel while trying to escape to go visit his neighbor. The owner called us to treat a laceration on his hind left leg. He had a 5 inch laceration on the lateral (outside) part of his cannon bone and a 1.5 inch laceration on the medial side of his cannon bone. The lateral laceration wasn't full thickness, so we just scrubbed it and then wrapped it. The medial laceration was a full thickness cut, so we scrubbed it and Dr. Peters put 2 staples in it.
Those were some of the unique cases that I have gotten to see this past week. I love the scope of equine medicine that I get to see here. One of the most interesting treatments I've seen so far has been acupuncture. Dr. Bidwell is a certified animal acupuncturist trained in traditional Eastern medicine. She sees anywhere from 5-30 patients every day. She starts her exam by doing a scan. She uses a blunt object, usually a needle cap, to apply moderate pressure to association points on the horses to see where they are sore. After she scans them, she will then give them a massage, stretch them and then start placing needles. The needles range in length from 0.5 inches to 2.5 inches. She places the needles in appropriate locations based on her Eastern medicine trying. The needles help to stimulate nerves and increase the flow of energy (Chi). Many of the hunters and jumpers at the show have similar sorenesses because they are doing similar jobs. They are commonly sore in their feet, neck, lower back, and sacroiliac region. After placing needles, Dr. Bidwell will sometimes attach a small machine that passes an electric current through the needles (this is called electroacupuncture). The electric current helps to stimulate the muscles and nerves more than just the needle itself. She will then use a cold laser in various locations to increase healing and help with pain relief. Most horses very much enjoy their acupuncture. They will lick and chew, which are signs of relaxation. Acupuncture is an amazing treatment for these athletes because it is non invasive, has minimal negative side effects, brings them pain relief, and treats the horse as a whole. It also opens up wonderful and interesting conversations with owners, grooms, and trainers.
I'm sad to see week 2 at East West Equine go so quickly, but I am enjoying every minute. I am so grateful for this amazing opportunity to work with world class veterinarians. My shout out this week goes to Dr. Peters for busting out a Harry Potter wand and casting a spell to "repair minor injuries" on our laceration pony. The days are long here and we have to find ways to laugh and relax and Dr. Peters did just that with his amazing wizardry.
Thanks for following along :)

Best,
Kaity