Approach to Diagnosis and Therapy of Neck and Back Pain

While some of the most common complaints related to athletic performance of the sport horse, the diagnosis of the sources of neck and back pain can be complex. The signs are easy enough to recognize, however the underlying cause may be perplexing. The rider or trainer may perceive that a horse has neck or back pain from a number of clinical signs. These may include sensitivity to grooming and saddling, resistance to rider weight, stiffness, pain on manual palpation of the neck or back, lack of engagement, and poor jumping performance. Many of these symptoms may arise as secondary issues to other lameness problems, particularly of the hind limb, and the difficult issue is determining the origin of the problem. Back pain may be due to secondary muscle strain related to hind limb lameness producing an altered gait, primary muscle strain related to athletic effort or a fall, impingement of dorsal spinous processes, strain of the sacroiliac ligament, poor saddle fit, inflammation of the supraspinous ligament, trauma to spinous processes, and facet joint arthritis to name a few. Neck pain may be related to a “forced” head position in training, injury from an accident of fall, muscle soreness, or osteoarthritis of synovial facet joints. A thorough physical examination, coupled with a complete therapeutic approach can most often identify and effectively relieve symptoms of neck and back pain. […]