Page 180 - A Practical Guide to Equine Radiography
P. 180
VetBooks.ir CHAPTER 15
Cervical spine
Indications • Parallel grid, depending on the system used
Radiography of the cervical spine is becoming • Rope/webbing headcollar to avoid metal
more and more common and is useful in the artefacts in the cranial neck region
diagnosis of horses with: • Blinkers
• Head stand
• Ataxia and abnormal gait • Mounted plate holder (ceiling- or wall-
• Neck pain and stiffness mounted)
• Cervical trauma • Radiation safety equipment: lead gowns and
• Abnormal head or neck carriage thyroid protectors.
• Forelimb lameness unable to localize by
diagnostic analgesia
• Scintigraphic or ultrasonographic findings Preparation
suggestive of cervical disease Sedation of the patient is advised. The use of
• Non-specific signs of neck problems including: blinkers is helpful in some cases.
poor performance and equitation problems
• As part of a pre-purchase examination.
Radiographic protocol
A standard radiographic examination of the
Equipment cervical spine of an adult horse is composed of
For a complete study of the cervical spine, the four overlapping laterolateral (LL) views.
following equipment is required: Additional projections:
• Portable X-ray machine is sufficient for the • Ventrodorsal (VD) of the cranial neck
cranial and mid neck; more caudal projec- • Right ventral-left dorsal oblique (RV-LDO)
tions require a high-output generator and left ventral-right dorsal oblique (LV-RDO).
• Large plates (35 × 43 cm)
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