Equine rehabilitation therapy for joint disease.

The principles of human athletic training and physical rehabilitation therapy can be applied to the horse, providing a reduction in discomfort and dysfunction associated with the various forms of joint disease. Conditions like osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, capsulitis, bursitis, tendonitis, and tenosynovitis have been studied in human medicine to determine the therapeutic effects of various physical agents. Physical agents, such as ice, heat, electricity, sound, light, magnetic fields, compression, and movement, can be used by the rehabilitation therapist to attempt to control pain, reduce swelling, and restore optimal movement and function in the affected joint. The equine therapist’s attention is focused not only on the affected joint but on the body as a whole. Management of secondary or compensatory problems plays an important role in equine therapy regimens. The equine therapist relies on information acquired from the attending veterinarian, the horse trainer, the rider, the groom, and the owner to obtain the history of the joint disease problem. Through palpation, observation of posture and movement, and range-of-motion (ROM) testing, the equine therapist gains information to use in planning a treatment program geared to the individual horse’s needs. Equine therapists are trained to palpate the musculoskeletal structures to assess tissue temperature, mobility, and tension. The horse receives the greatest benefit from rehabilitative therapies when the equine therapist is in consultation with the veterinarian concerning his or her evaluation and diagnosis of the problem. Early signs of joint disease are subtle and are often confused with behavioral problems or overlooked as ‘‘normal’’ postexercise stiffness. Usually, this is the result of repeated trauma associated with the impact shock when the horse’s foot hits the ground. Three physiologic systems work together to absorb and disperse the impact shock of hoof-to-ground contact.