Tools to Assess the Equine Muscle

- yourself --> through history since often non-specific history and clinical signs

What is the best tool for working up muscle disease cases?

- duration

- intermittency

- triggers

- exercise schedule

- diet, pasture, housing, plants (box elder)

- medication

- vaccination --> flu or stranges

- other animals

What might you want to ask an owner with a horse with muscle issues?

1. at rest to see if its square, size, shape symmetry, fasciculation (elbow or rear legs)

2. during exercise: walk/trott, gait or lameness, weakness, stiffness or pain

How do you want to inspect the horse if its having muscle issues?

- muscle tone

- consistency or sensitivity

- swelling, atrophy, heat

- comparison of both sides

How do you want to palpate a horse if its having muscle issues?

- percussion myotonia (pic is after percussion)

- lumbar = extension

- gluteal = flexion

How do you want to percuss the horse if its having muscle issues?

- CK

- AST

- LDH

What are the enzymes seen with muscle membrane damage, in horses?

- increase after the injury = will be delayed

- CK is quick and spikes after 4-6 hours

- LDH and ASK is slow and spikes 24-48 hours

When do we want to look at muscle enzymes in a horse with muscle disease?

- a horse after training

What does a CK of 500 mean?

- a horse with extreme fatigue

What does a CK of 1,000 - 10,000 mean?

- a horse with rhabdomyolysis

What does a CK of 10,000 - 100,000 mean?

true

True or false

only large increase of muscle enzymes mean disease and you need a base line value before testing

- NEVER in a horse with overt clinical signs

- mild exercise in affected horses, is often enough to induce changes in muscle enzymes = 15 - 30 mins with a blood sample at rest and take blood 4-6 hours and 24-48 hours later

When can you do an exercise test to see if muscle rise?

- myoglobinuria

- increased CREAT

- electrolyte imbalance

What might your U/A look like in a horse with a muscle disease?

- bergstroem needle

- punch

- excision = best way

What are methods to do a muscular bx?

true

True or false

you should always know how to do the biopsy and know where to send a muscle biopsy before taking it

- semimembranosus

- gluteus medius

- sacrocaudalis dorsalis

What muscles do we commonly take bx from in horses?