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Veterinary

Physiotherapy for neck pain in the horse

02 January 2021
Clinical
15 mins read
02 January 2021
Volume 5 · Issue 1
Figure 2. Dynamic mobilisation exercises: A Chin to knee; B Chin between fetlocks; C Chin to girth;and, D Chin to stifle. The horse is motivated, by using food bait, to move through a range of motion that results in cervical and thoracolumbar flexion (images A and B) and lateral flexion (images C and D). The intervertebral angles have been described by Clayton et al (2010 and 2012) and the effect on spinal muscle cross-sectional area by Stubb et al (2011) and de Oliveira et al (2015).
Figure 2. Dynamic mobilisation exercises: A Chin to knee; B Chin between fetlocks; C Chin to girth;and, D Chin to stifle. The horse is motivated, by using food bait, to move through a range of motion that results in cervical and thoracolumbar flexion (images A and B) and lateral flexion (images C and D). The intervertebral angles have been described by Clayton et al (2010 and 2012) and the effect on spinal muscle cross-sectional area by Stubb et al (2011) and de Oliveira et al (2015).

Abstract

This review presents the physiotherapy approach to assessment and treatment of neck pain in horses, supporting veterinary care as part of a multidisciplinary team. Horses with neck pain form a high percentage of veterinary physiotherapists' caseloads and physiotherapists are trained in specific assessment strategies to identify functional limitations in this region. After investigation and veterinary intervention, physiotherapy care can address factors such as pain, reduced range of motion and muscle weakness. Through the selection of appropriate manual therapy techniques and prescription of therapeutic exercises, a physiotherapist can assist restoring function and performance in the cervical region. Physiotherapy treatment of the neck should occur, along with consideration of the whole horse's musculoskeletal function, to support the veterinary medical or surgical intervention.

The head and neck of the horse have a highly specialised structure to allow for the function of the region (Zsoldos and Licka, 2015). Evolved to avoid predation, a horse in the grassland plains needed a long neck to reach the ground, because of lengthened limbs aiding fast movement. The recognition of a potential threat needed the horse to be able to switch from grazing to surveying the horizon and then high-speed locomotion almost in an instant. There is considerable variation in cervical anatomy between the cranial, mid and caudal regions, which enables the range of movement, but maintains stability and the neuromuscular control of this motion. It is not a surprise that the management of horses with head and neck pain and dysfunction was listed as the most common area for physiotherapy care, following back and pelvis region issues in a recent survey of veterinary physiotherapists (Tabor, 2020a). The aim of this review is to present the physiotherapy approach to assessment and treatment of neck pain in horses, supporting veterinary care as part of a multidisciplinary team.

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physiotherapy
neck pain
manual therapy
therapeutic exercise prescription
rehabilitation
equine