Page 42 - 2020 Stallion Register

COLD THERAPY
Can be Beneÿcial Soon After Injury
One of the best ways to initially reduce pain and inflammation after an injury is to use cold, according to
Dr. Kathryn Seabaugh, Assistant Professor (with focus on lameness and sportsmedicine), University of Georgia.
“When we talk about cold therapy, there are several methods and strategies we can use. The easiest and simplest form of cold therapy for horses is cold hosing—with the cool water from an outdoor hydrant. The veterinarian may tell you to cold hose an injury or a limb for 15 to 30 minutes. This is a way to apply cold water, but not cold enough for maxi- mum benefit,” says Seabaugh.
“Regarding cold therapy, our target tem- perature within the tissues should be somewhere between 48 to 56 degrees Fahrenheit. There are situations where we try to get below 48 degrees Fahrenheit, such as when dealing with laminitis, but there is some risk for detrimental effects because this will cause a change on the cellular level,” she says.
“The average time for applying cold would be about 15 to 20 minutes, but this depends on what you are treating. You can apply it once a day or up to every 2 to 4 hours if you are trying to get inflammation out of a limb. When using cold therapy in the target temperature range, there is a decrease in pain, so it has an analgesic effect, and decreases swelling and inflamma- tion,” she says.
The cold also leads to vasoconstriction (narrowing of blood vessels) thereby slowing blood flow and reducing the pooling of fluid in
by Heather Smith Thomas
the tissues. “When a body part is swollen, it is often hot, due to the increase in blood flow and vasodilation. Cold therapy decreases some of the inflammation that goes along with vasodilation. The cold also affects metabolism on a cellular level,” she says.
ACUTE INJURIES
“Within this category are wounds or traumatic injury to a leg. We need to be careful when using cold therapy as first aid
in wounds because there are more important things that need to be addressed as soon as possible by a veterinarian. Often the first step for a wound would not be cold therapy. The cold you apply could do more damage than good,” says Seabaugh.
On the other hand, if the horse has a swollen leg and is fairly comfortable (not severely lame), cold therapy is helpful. “You need to determine, however, whether this
is just temporary swelling, or needs to be looked at by a veterinarian, for more aggres- sive treatment,” she explains.
“We frequently use cold therapy on tendon and ligament injuries, to try to reduce inflam- mation. Along with inflammation there can be enzymes and other products that can have
a negative effect on the already injured tissue,” she says.
“We use cold therapy early—only in the inflammatory stage—which would be the first 24 to 48 hours, though in some cases up to 72 hours. Beyond that, there isn’t much need for cold therapy,” explains Seabaugh.
40 New Mexico Horse Breeder