Page 181 - The Veterinary Care of the Horse

compared with those of the opposite limb. They are also compared with others obtained from

the same area of an uninjured horse of similar type and age as it is possible for both limbs to
VetBooks.ir be abnormal.

What is it used for?

Scintigraphy is particularly useful for the following.
• Detecting problems in areas difficult to X-ray, e.g. the lumbar spine, or areas that can

only be X-rayed under general anaesthesia, e.g. the sacroiliac and hip joints.
• Determining whether bony changes seen on radiographs are active or settled.

• Locating sites of increased bone activity in horses that are dangerous to nerve block or

where nerve blocks have not eliminated the pain completely.
• Localizing sites of increased tissue uptake of the radioactive material where pain is

evident but radiographic changes are negative or equivocal, e.g. some cases of dental

disease.
• Aiding diagnosis in horses that have multiple causes of lameness because much or all of

the patient’s skeleton can be examined during the procedure.
• Investigating horses that are not lame but show reduced or uncharacteristically poor

performance.
• Detecting stress fractures early enough to prevent subsequent catastrophic fracture at a

time when radiographic changes are not apparent.

The bone phase may be used to detect or confirm the presence of:

• degenerative joint disease

• stress fractures
• fractures

• infection of bone

• neoplasia (cancer)

• enthesopathy (bone formation at the site of attachment of ligaments and tendons)

• periosteal reactions, e.g. sore shins
• damaged skeletal muscle in horses that have ‘tied up’.

The timing of bone scans

Scintigraphy is a useful tool for early detection of bone activity that may not show up on