| VETERINARY |
W O BBLER SY ND ROME AN D T HE T HOR OU G HBR ED Professor Celia M Marr
obbler Syndrome, or spinal ataxia, affects around 2% of young thoroughbreds. In Europe, the most common cause relates to narrowing of the cervical vertebral canal in combination with malformation of the cervical vertebrae. Narrowing in medical terminology is “stenosis” and “myelopathy” implies pathology of the nervous tissue, hence the other name often used for this condition is cervical vertebral stenotic myelopathy (CVSM). Wobbler Syndrome was the topic of this summer’s Gerald Leigh Memorial Lectures, an event held at Palace House, Newmarket. Gerald Leigh was a very successful owner breeder and these annual lectures, now in their second year, honour of Mr Leigh’s passion for the thoroughbred horse and its health and welfare. The lectures are
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Professor Celia M Marr, Shutterstock
attended by vets, breeders and trainers, and this year because of the importance and impact of Wobbler syndrome on thoroughbred health, several individuals involved in thoroughbred insurance were also able to participate. Dr Steve Reed, of Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital, Kentucky and international leader in the field of equine neurology gave an overview of Wobbler Syndrome. Affected horses are ataxic, which means that they have lost the unconscious mechanisms which control their limb position and movement. Young horses with CVSM will generally present for acute onset of ataxia or gait abnormalities, however, mild ataxia and clumsiness may often go unnoticed. Trainers often report affected horses are growing rapidly, well-fed, and large for their age. It is common for riders to describe an ataxic horse as weak or
clumsy. Sometimes, a horse which has been training normally will suddenly become profoundly affected, losing coordination and walking as though they were drunk, or in the most severe cases stumbling and falling. Neurological deficits are present in all four limbs, but are usually, but not always more noticeable in the hindlimbs than the forelimbs. In horses with significant degenerative joint disease, lateral compression of the spinal cord may lead to asymmetry of the clinical signs. When the horse is standing still, it may adopt an abnormal wide-based stance or have abnormal limb placement, and delayed positioning reflexes. At the walk, the CVSM horse’s forelimbs and hindlimbs may not be moving on the same track and there can be exaggerated movement of the hind limbs when the horse is circled. Detailed physical examination may reveal abrasions around