Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Internal neurolysis of the maxillary branch of the trigeminal nerve for the treatment of equine trigeminal mediated headshaking syndrome.
- Journal:
- The Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne
- Year:
- 2018
- Authors:
- Bell, Chris et al.
- Affiliation:
- Royal University Hospital · Canada
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 5-year-old Hannovarian warmblood gelding was having serious trouble with headshaking, especially when he exercised or was in direct sunlight. He would shake his head up and down, rub his face on his legs and the ground, sneeze a lot, and even hit his nose with his front legs. This behavior made him unsafe to ride, so the vets diagnosed him with equine trigeminal mediated headshaking syndrome, which is a condition related to nerve issues in the face. They performed surgery to treat the problem by carefully working on the nerves in his face, and while the severe headshaking stopped after the surgery, he still had some face rubbing that took a couple of weeks to clear up with medication. Ultimately, he could go back to being outside in the pasture, but he still had some head movements that made riding uncomfortable.
Abstract
A 5-year-old Hannovarian warmblood gelding was presented for recurrent headshaking exacerbated with exercise. The horse displayed clinical signs of repetitive vertical head movements, face rubbing on the forelimbs and on the ground, repetitive sneezing, and striking the muzzle with his forelimbs. The clinical signs resulted in a horse that could not be ridden and was dangerous. Clinical signs were most persistent in direct sunlight, but occurred with excitement, exercise, or bridling indoors. A diagnosis of equine trigeminal mediated headshaking syndrome was made. Surgical treatment was performed with a supraorbital approach to the maxillary branch of the trigeminal nerve as it exits the round foramen, where an internal neurolysis (nerve combing) was conducted on both the left and right nerves. Severe headshaking behavior resolved after surgery. The horse displayed face rubbing of the muzzle which began 96 hours after surgery and resolved over 12 days with corticosteroid and vitamin E therapy. The horse became pasture sound and the clinical signs had resolved in the presence of sunlight, but repetitive vertical head movements persisted under saddle which left the horse unpleasant to ride.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30026624/