What are the risks associated with joint injections?

How should I manage my horse following a joint injection (intra-articular therapy)?

How should I manage my horse following intra-articular therapy of the stifle joint(s)?

How should I manage my horse following injection of the sacro-iliac and/or back?

Question: What are the risks associated with joint injections?

Answer: Injecting a horse with any substance, be it a vaccine in the muscle or an intra-articular therapy into a joint there is trauma to tissues. Blood can enter the area injected, or contamination which carries the risk of an inflammatory reaction or infection. Veterinarians take specific measures to control this risk including aseptic (sterile) preparation of the area surrounding the joint and he substances to be injected. A small amount of antibiotic is often included in the medication injected as well. At the time of injection, good horse handling also minimizes the trauma to tissues involved. All of these factors combine to make the risk of infection minimal. An uncommon reaction that doesn't involve infection but simply a reaction to the material injected is called a "flare". The body responds to the injected material by creating painful inflammation at the site, and possibly lameness. First aid measures including cold hosing and the use of oral anti-inflammatory drugs are used to treat these cases. For a more in-depth discussion of this topic including the commonly used medications, please refer to the article from The Horse Magazine:

Joint Injections: A Good Idea?

by: Sushil Dulai Wenholz

May 2004 Article # 5160

If you've been around horses, particularly performance horses, for even a short while, you've probably met someone who's had a horse's joints injected. The procedure--which involves injecting medication directly into the joint to combat such problems ...

Complete article available here:   Joint Injections: A Good Idea? - TheHorse.com .

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Question: How should I manage my horse following a joint injection (intra-articular therapy)?

Answer: Following intra-articular therapy of most joints, we recommend your horse be given bute for 3 days (1 gram twice daily) and be stall rested with brief hand walking for 10 minutes twice daily. Following that the horse can be returned to light work for one week with turnout, followed by return to its normal work the following week. Monitor the injection site for heat, swelling, pain or tenderness, any discharge. Monitor patient for any systemic signs of inflammation or infection such as fever, or going off feed. Most injections may take up to 14 days before the full benefits of the treatment are realized. If you have any concerns about the region treated, or the aftercare instructions please contact N.W.E.P. at the number listed.

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Question: How should I manage my horse following intra-articular therapy of the stifle joint(s)?

Answer: Following intra-articular therapy of the stifle joints, we recommend your horse be given bute for 5 days (1 gram twice daily) and be stall rested with brief hand walking for 10 minutes twice daily. Following that the horse can be returned to light work for one week with turnout, followed by return to its normal work the following week. Monitor the injection site for heat, swelling, pain or tenderness, any discharge. Monitor patient for any systemic signs of inflammation or infection such as fever, or going off feed. Stifle injections may take up to 21 days before the full benefits of the treatment are realized. If you have any concerns about the region treated, or the aftercare instructions please contact N.W.E.P. at the number listed.

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Question : How should I manage my horse following injection of the sacro-iliac and/or back?

Answer: Following sacro-iliac and/or back injections, we recommend your horse be given bute for 3 days (1 gram twice daily) and be stall rested with brief hand walking for 20 minutes twice daily. For the following week, exercise can include turnout, and/or lungeing, but no rider's weight should be carried during this time. If the horse is responding favorable at the end of this week, we advise progressing to include a week of light work with a rider. However, a second week of exercise with no rider's weight may be needed in some cases. Following the week of light work with a rider, return to normal work is advised. Monitor the injection site for heat, swelling, pain or tenderness. Monitor patient for any systemic signs of inflammation or infection such as fever, or going off feed. It may take up to 21-28 days before the full benefits of the treatment are realized. If you have any concerns about the region treated, or the aftercare instructions please contact N.W.E.P. at the number listed.

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