Things I far too proud of:

my paper (see following)

A Brief Introspective into the Causative Sources and Physical Effects of Equine Osteochondritis Dissecans

Cat Benson

06/ 27 /06     

            Osteochondritis dissecans is a failure of the bone beneath the smooth articular cartilage inside the joints to form properly during early growth. This then causes cracks to spread through the cartilage and the cartilage fractures into flaps and fragments known as “joint mice.” Chemicals are released within the joint during the development of these flaps and produces inflammation within the joint. This leads to the eventual lameness of the equine. Though, it is possible that some very young foals suffering from Osteochondritis dissecans will never show any symptoms and may never become diagnosed. They may, in fact, repair on their own.

            There are several proposed causatives of Osteochondritis dissecans, most heavily of which deal with the health and dietary maintenance of the adolescent equine.  Osteochondritis dissecans is classified with a variety of other bone and joint growth deviations as developmental orthopedic disease.  A nutritional deficiency or imbalance is most likely the main causative of these developmental disorders. The nutritional anomaly supposed could either be deficiencies of minerals copper and selenium, excess amounts of zinc or manganese, or an imbalance of calcium and phosphorus. Growth spurts, either natural or forced by a high protein, high energy diet, could also be involved as factor in developmental orthopedic disease. The hormonal imbalances of insulin, thyroxin, and growth hormone that follow such a growth spurt are proposed to result in poor development of subchondral bone and insufficient maturation of cartilage. Like most diseases and disorders, predisposition towards Osteochondritis dissecans can be determined by genetic history and previous traumatic damage to the cartilage of joints through excessive exercise, followed by a period of prolonged, confined rest.   All the major causatives of Osteochondritis dissecans lead back to a lack of understanding of the physical needs of an adolescent equine.

            The diagnosis of Osteochondritis dissecans commonly follows the chief complaint of a swollen, fluid-filled joint on the hock, stifle, fetlock, or between the neck vertebrate. More rarely observed is a swelling of shoulder, elbow, or hip joints. The swelling of one joint is often the signalment of at least some degree of OCD also in the same joint of the opposing limb.  Following a test of flexation, the affected joint or joints may display lameness to some extent. Also through palpation of the joint, it may be proven that the horse in question responds painfully to pressure . To provide certainty in the diagnosis, certain tests must then be run. First of which would be a detailed analysis of radiographic examination pictures taken of the supposed site of joint damage. This is then to be followed by either a nuclear bone scan (scintigraphy), or by observing the interior of the joint through a “keyhole” surgery known as arthoscopy.  The latter is used to discover abnormal bone shape, bone cysts, growing flaps of cartilage, bone or cartilage chips, or fragments. These would be a definite sign of a developmental orthopedic disease.           

            In response to the discovery of Osteochondritis dissecans, one of two courses of action can be taken. The first of which being more conservative in judgment and taking no action, save that of mere management. The more invasive option would be to go in surgically and repair the damage to the joint. This repair would involve removing bone and cartilage fragments from the joint, cutting back the frayed articular cartilage, and flushing out the toxins that have built up in the joint.  Follow up treatment would include the first option treatment of conservative management. Management would include a course of injections of polysulphated glycosaminoglycans or hyaluronic acid into the muscle or directly in the joint to reduce the inflammation. This would be in combination with confined rest, adjustment of the diet and the inclusion of glucosamine in the diet.  The choice of which option to take is dependent upon nature of the abnormality, the owner’s planned future use of the horse and the veterinary surgeon’s experience with this type of case.

            In the event that Osteochondritis dissecans is not diagnosed, nor treated, it is possible, especially in the case of young foals, that a mild case will resolve itself natural after a period of time.  However, if the case has more of an obvious and significant nature action must be taken to prevent further joint degeneration.  Toxins due to chemicals released during inflammation could possibly contribute to osteoarthritis or chronic degenerative joint disease. In the event of discovery of Osteochondritis dissecans in young foals, it is advised to take a course of conservative management and observation in hopes that the joint will repair itself naturally. If still present in the yearling stage, or first diagnosed then, it is more likely to take a surgical course of action, depending on the condition of the joint. Waiting to perform surgery is advised to prevent later surgeries caused by a need to repair OCD abnormalities (lesions) that could develop even after one surgery has already taken place. The fewer surgeries preformed on a young equine, the less stress its body takes and the higher the success rate will be. As every case is viewed as an individual, it is impossible to predict in general the success rate of treating Osteochondritis dissecans.

            In the effort to prevent Osteochondritis dissecans it is important to educate one’s self on the proper dietary care for the growth and management of adolescent equines. Consideration in accords to diet should even be directed at the health and maintenance of the pregnant and lactating dam. Precautions should also be taken against excessive exercise. While regular exercise is important to the proper musculoskeletal growth of yearling, and may possibly prevent the onset of Osteochondritis dissecans, excessive concussion upon both developing and developed joints can provide significant inflammation and damage to the joint.  Finally, it is important to realize that rapid growth rates and “growth spurts” are unnatural in equines.  A rapidly growing foal should be weaned earlier than one that is developing at a normal or reduced rate. Care must also be taken to provide a smooth transition form a diet consisting of mare’s milk to roughage and pelleted feed.  Adjusting the foal to survive on hard feeds before the total removal of milk prevents a “growth spurt” caused a foal’s sudden drop in condition that is followed by rapid gain in condition through the use of supplative concentrates.  Never, ever should a foal be forced to grow more rapidly than is natural to the individual, this is especially true in the case of young foals that have been weakened by illness. With balanced rations and regular veterinary care and examinations, it is possible to discover Osteochondritis dissecans at an early and more treatable stage or to prevent them all together.

Works cited

Harris, Susan E. The United States Pony Club Manual of Horsemanship: Intermediate Horsemanship: C Level. New York: Hungry Minds, Inc., 1995

Harris, Susan E. The United States Pony Club Manual of Horsemanship: Advanced Horsemanship: B, HA, A Level. New York: Howell Book House, 1996

Equine Medicine and Surgery. Penn Veterinary Medicine. 19 June 2006. <http://www.vet.upenn.edu/nbc/equine/>

Recent Abstracts on Equines. Big Five Veterinary Pharmaceutical Company (Pty) Ltd. 17 June 2006 < http://bigfive.jl.co.za/surgery.htm>

Equine Medical Research Database. Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, Inc. 18 June 2006 < http://www.grayson-jockeyclub.org/archivesDisplay.asp?section=14>

Equine Orthopaedics Topics. Orthopaedic Research Center. 18 June 2006 http://www.equineortho.colostate.edu/faq.htm

Osteochondritis Dissecans. American Academy of Family Physicians. 25 June 2007 http://familydoctor.org/488.xml

OCD: Osteochondritis Dissecans. PetFoodDirect.com and NationalPetPharmacy.com. 25 June 2007 http://www.thepetcenter.com/xra/ocd.html

 OSTEOCHONDRITIS DISSECANS (OCD). The Liphook Equine Hospital. 26 June 2007 <http://www.liphookequinehosp.co.uk/llocd.htm>

Well this is belated. HI Y'all I'm at UT Martin studying Ag at governor's school. So.... if you haven't seen me around that's probably the reason. Unless of course, that was all a dream and I am suffering a major cause of Invisiablitis. But that diesease is more prone to nudist colonies so I beleve myself safe from its clutchs. Well, I should sleep, have lecter on  field biodiversity tomorrow, Yay?

Hey!

Sorry for not updating in forever *hids sheepishly under her bangs*

This is just going to be a quick post. I followed Ashton blindly and am now a member of deviant art. My name is Sehrai. Please don't ask where it came from. I'd rather not question my subconcious. Well thanks for believing in me. I SHALL return, someday.

            A cold hand upon my back tipped me straight and stiff, like a tin soldier upon the grass knoll. My knees were chilled by the wet, muddy stain. Struggling to regain my balance, I bowled into the shaggy, muscle-massed shoulder of my horse, Hobbit. With a heavy sigh he side-stepped my weight, which was already starting to settle on my own two feet.

            With a measured stride, I drug the stubborn pony to the gate. The latch was a mere chain, rusted and gritty as it clung to a bent nail. The heavy wooden gate wore its splintery weight upon the rubbery leather of my palms. The gate closed sharply behind Hobbit’s beautiful tail as it trailed like a mourning black wedding veil.

            Leaping astride Hobbit’s wide and dusty back, I gathered up the supple leather of the reins and buried my hand in the winding snakes of his long black mane. The piercing wind slipped through the puckered stitching of my boots and I shivered upon tense wire; the needle sharp hair of my pony. Head and tail raised, Hobbit strode forth with a feral pride.

            Clinging like a burr on a raven’s talon, we flew over the pock-marked fields. The wind snapped bitterly upon all the pores of my face. Beyond the fence, a copper-colored filly stalked ghosts, her ears pinned to her bowed head. Slowing to a walk, I took a steadied look at the looming pines. Hobbit shuffled to a halt, his ears pitched nervously toward a lumpy black shadow. Slipping from his wooden back, I slunk to the body of a raven.

            My already muddy knees sunk into the earth in silence. Upon the tempting grass of autumn, the body of the raven quivered softly in the wind. I did not touch him, but sat in revered silence as maggots crawled in and out of a depression in his side. The raven lay upon a wing, outstretched and tipping for the sky. The other curved around his dark underbelly, hiding the gaping hole from the eyes of the world.

            It was a long time before I could look east to the wide open beak of the raven. His body did not smell and for a moment I thought he would utter a cry, whisking him away from the creeping night. Hesitant for realization of mortality, I slowly looked in to the raven’s eyes. Their unsettling black clarity reflected my own and hot salty tears dripped down my face like oil. The unearthly quiet broke under my sobs, like a crescendo after the sharp intake of breath. Still it did not matter, for the raven shoved me into the closed book of my past.

            In my mind I am five, a mask I wear for the world and everything is fine as long as I am five. Yet in the mirror of my past, this charade is broken and I can no longer repress the knowledge of my years.

            In the raven’s eyes, I watch the ten year old me numbly cling to the neck of my horse as she gave her last dying breath. Below the hill on which I stand sets a house. There lies my Nana in a coma, the cancer slowly eating her away as she races to join the dog I buried the week before. Cheyenne’s golden fur is warmed by three feet of dirt as she directs her eternal gaze towards the pool where she used to swim. Tears fall five years too late and glisten on the wing of the raven. I can not even face the hospital’s corruption and greed that first drove us to a dark and dreary rental house and at last to the other side of the country.

            Yet, the raven is not finished with me. Through his clear eyes I see the war that tore my father from home; the cold and lonely nights that I trudged through the snow to a grave. There lies my shadow, my Mia. The sweet tempered Chihuahua deserved a far better end than what she got: torn apart by a dog, I held back my tears as I laid her body into the ground. Fearing the pain, I buried her memory with the tears in the stone casement of my heart. Within a year only picture could make me remember her name or her eyes that shown all tawny brown as she lay peacefully bathing in the morning sun.

            When my dad returned from Iraq, I thought fortune had smiled upon us. I now realize it was a grimace. His bosses called the returning hero into their office to say “We prayed to God and he told us to let you go,” and “It would have been easier for us if you had died on an Iraqi sword.” Like rats aboard a sinking ship, my friends deserted me and I drowned in the depression of a house trapped under gray skies.

            The final chapter of my closed past was quickly dawning and still the raven kept his hold. A new house loomed above me like solitary confinement. Its dead white rooms held air mattresses filled with illusion and distress, the fine white pillows were saturated with escaped tears, pressured by the house itself. I looked in mirrors, CD collections, and dusty shoe boxes for the girl I was, but the boxes were cleared away and I was alone. No friend could be made with a girl who could not even remember if she liked them. In place of a face, I painted on the porcelain mask of a doll; constantly happy. Yet, even before the paint could dry, my life was broken once more. A contract’s links found their weak spot and once more dad’s resume was posted on the board. In the face of morality, I removed my mask, my shattered raven, and set free tears condensed by five years hiding.

            The raven’s eyes blurred with the swimming of my tears. The piercing bond was no longer visible; still, my body was lead. The regressed memories dug me a pit from which I could never escape, alone. The silence was deafening as I hung my head in defeat.

            A soft touch to my shoulder sent me a flame of love strong enough to banish even my darkest thoughts. Gentle cooing upon the hairs of my neck warmed my body back to life. Over the shoulder of my crumpled form, Hobbit cradled me protectively with his bowed head. My fingers stretched for his wind-raised coat. With the weakness of a child, I clung frightened to his shoulder. The rich, warm scent of a nature-kept horse comforted me until my sob became dry heaves that racked my body. Slowly I slid to the sanctuary of his back and Hobbit turned to give me one last look. His fuzzy ears stood still like a silent childhood teddy and I looked into the soft molten glass of his eyes. For a moment realization dawned and a love deeply rooted in trust, understanding, and compassion was conveyed. A single tear slid down my cheek, bottling world happiness. Then, with a flick of his mane, Hobbit looked away. Another tear joined the first for that was a once in a lifetime moment.

            We rode on, my eyes red-rimmed, and my cheeks stiff with the ghost of evaporated tears. Once more we were horse and girl. Once more I wore the raven’s mask.       

 Yippy Skippy Peanutbutter. I'm going to  pony club quiz!!!

Four Hours Later:

*grumble* Paperwork *Stares at frightenly paper-cut hands ( the sign of  a nerd in desperate need of attention)

Another Hour Later:

Study, headache, Owwwwwwwww..........

Twenty Minutes Later:

*gleefully clinging to her silver medal* Yippy Skippy Peanutbutter. I'm going to  pony club quiz!!!

Four Hours Later: (continue this pattern for at least one month)

Just Kidding. Quiz has some killer benefits, including an all night dance ( just what you wanted when you smell of horses).