Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Treatment of Septic Arthritis With Acoustic Cavitation and Lavage: A Case Report.
- Journal:
- Journal of equine veterinary science
- Year:
- 2020
- Authors:
- Rinnovati, Riccardo et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences · Italy
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A 2-year-old Quarter Horse filly was brought in after injuring her right front leg on barbed wire, which led to an infection in her fetlock joint called septic arthritis. Tests showed a high number of white blood cells in the joint fluid, indicating infection. To treat her, the veterinarians used a special technique that involved washing out the joint with a device that creates tiny bubbles to help clean the area. They removed some damaged tissue and used three liters of saline to flush out the infection. While more research is needed, the initial results suggest that this new treatment method could be effective.
Abstract
A 2-year-old Quarter Horse filly was admitted to our facility with a two-day history of trauma caused by barbed wire on the front face of the right front limb fetlock joint. A septic arthritis was confirmed with the synovial fluid examination. The cytologic evaluation of synovial fluid showed 101,000 leukocytes/mm, 90% neutrophils, and a total protein concentration of 4 g/dL. It was, therefore, decided to perform an arthroscopic lavage using an ultrasonic device with the tip inserted inside the synovial cavity to exploit the phenomenon of acoustic cavitation. After the removal of the synovial pannus, the probe was left to vibrate in the area near the visible penetrating wound inside the joint until three liters of saline was finished. Further studies are needed for understanding and applying this technology in different equine fields and with different bacterial species. However, these first results are promising for the efficacy of this innovative procedure.
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/32303323/