Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How cooling horse hooves affects laminitis development and blood flow
By Stokes, Simon M et al.·Published in Equine veterinary journal·2020·School of Veterinary Science, Australia·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: The effect of continuous digital hypothermia on lamellar energy metabolism and perfusion during laminitis development in two experimental models.
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A group of Standardbred horses was studied to see how cooling their feet (continuous digital hypothermia) affected laminitis, a painful hoof condition. The horses were divided into groups: some received no treatment, while others were induced with laminitis. The cooled limbs showed lower levels of lactate and pyruvate, which are indicators of energy metabolism, compared to the untreated limbs. This suggests that cooling may help protect the hooves by reducing energy supply to harmful processes while keeping essential functions stable.
People also search for: horse laminitis treatment · cooling hooves for laminitis · signs of laminitis in horses
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Continuous digital hypothermia (CDH) prevents lamellar failure in the euglycaemic hyperinsulinaemic clamp (EHC) and oligofructose (OF) laminitis models, but the mechanisms remain unclear. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effects of CDH on lamellar energy metabolism and perfusion in healthy horses and during EHC and OF laminitis models. STUDY DESIGN: In vivo experiment. METHODS: Archived samples were used from Standardbred geldings that received no treatment (CON) (n = 8) or underwent EHC (n = 8) or OF (n = 6) laminitis models. Both forelimbs were instrumented with a lamellar microdialysis system, and one forelimb was cooled (CDH) with the other maintained at ambient temperature (AMB). Microdialysate was collected every 6 hours and analysed for glucose, lactate and pyruvate concentrations and lactate to pyruvate ratio (L:P). Microdialysis urea clearance was used to estimate lamellar tissue perfusion. Data were analysed using a mixed-effects linear regression model. RESULTS: Glucose did not change in CDH limbs relative to AMB in CON (P = .3), EHC (P = .3) or OF (P = .6) groups. There was a decrease in lactate (P < .001) and pyruvate (P < .01) in CDH limbs relative to AMB in all groups. L:P decreased in CON CDH relative to CON AMB (P < .001) but was not different in EHC (P = .6) and OF (P = .07) groups. Urea clearance decreased in CDH limbs relative to AMB in CON (P = .002) and EHC (P < .001), but not in OF (P = .4). MAIN LIMITATIONS: The EHC model may not mimic natural endocrinopathic laminitis. CONCLUSIONS: CDH caused a marked decrease in lamellar glucose metabolism (CON, EHC and OF) and perfusion (CON and EHC) without affecting lamellar glucose concentration. Although cellular energy failure is not a primary pathophysiological event in EHC and OF laminitis models, CDH may act by limiting energy supply to pathologic cellular processes whilst preserving those critical to lamellar homoeostasis.
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 on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31793047/