Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Atypical villonodular synovitis in a horse.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 1996
- Authors:
- Vickers, K L & Ross, M W
- Affiliation:
- Department of Clinical Studies · United States
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 4-year-old male Standardbred trotter was having trouble with his left front leg and was found to have a serious issue with the cartilage in that area, likely due to a past infection in the joint. During a procedure to look inside the joint, the veterinarians discovered a large growth that they thought was a villonodular lesion, which is a type of abnormal tissue growth. They surgically removed the mass and treated the horse with several medications, including antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs, and he was able to return to racing afterward. A closer look at the tissue showed it was made up of healing tissue covered by skin-like cells, suggesting that the growth might have formed from skin cells getting into a reactive area in the joint. Overall, the treatment was successful, and the horse recovered well.
Abstract
A 4-year-old sexually intact male Standardbred trotter was evaluated for left forelimb lameness. A presumptive diagnosis of severe cartilage damage was made because the horse had a history of infectious arthritis involving the left metacarpophalangeal joint. Arthroscopic evaluation revealed what was presumed to be a large villonodular lesion. The mass was surgically removed, and the horse was treated with procaine penicillin G, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, phenylbutazone, and polysulfated glycosaminoglycans and eventually returned to racing. Histologic examination of the mass revealed a bed of granulation tissue covered with keratinized epithelium. We hypothesize that the lesion developed secondarily to implantation of epithelial cells into a reactive villonodular lesion.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8899026/