Bone Bruise Injury

[Cowgirl]

My mare whacked her leg on the pipe fence in her run back in mid-November, when they gave her a neighbor. The two horses have since worked it out. She was NEVER lame, however it was pretty swollen and I had a clinic to ride in, so I had the vet out to take a look and xray. He xrayed her splint bone and it was not broken and she was sound, so he told me to keep riding her and we did a bute course and, to be super cautious, I did an adequan series. She has a swollen area over the bones on the outside and will stock up a little bit over it on the one day during the week that she does not have pasture turnout. I have been icing before riding, applying a cold arnica linament (one designed for martial artists), riding, then cold hosing, and using an Infrared unit I have, then applying the cold linament again. It has gotten smaller, but not gone away.

People tell me it can take six months.

I'm wondering if any of you have experiences healing bone bruises (my vet says these splint bone whacks on the outside of hind legs are pretty common) and if there was anything special you did, how long it took, etc.

[JB]

It can take a lot longer than 6 months if it was a really deep bruise. Arnica is awesome for bruises. I don't know if it would help during this chronic phase, but internal arnica can benefit bruising as well.

It might be worth another xray to make sure there isn't a sequestrum developing.

btw - I'd love to know more about this martial arts cold arnica liniment!

[Cowgirl]

Here you go: http://www.orientalherb.com/product_info.php?cPath=23&products_id=32

What is a sequestrum?

[JB]

Cool, thanks!

A sequestrum is a piece of bone that dies and eventually pulls off the bone. Requires surgery.

[Cowgirl]

Ah! Thanks. That is the reason I had her xrayed, and it was done by a lameness specialist, not a regular farm vet. He did several different views and didn't find any break in the bone.

[JB]

Sorry, I wasn't clear. A sequestrum can take a while to develop and doesn't even have to begin a part of a fracture or break. The bruising alone, especially right at the point of impact, can cause that section of bone to die. That's why I'd suggest a new xray at this point just to make sure :)

[Paddys Mom]

I had a horse-related bone bruise just above my knee and my doctor gave me steroids.

[Lone]

I don't have any experience with bone bruises on horses, but I had a bad one on my leg last year. Doc told me it would take about a year until I didn't notice it. It's been about 10 months and I still notice it, so... it can be a pretty long haul

[FancyASB]

I had a bone bruise in my hip, horse slammed me into a wall took over a year to heal but not like a horse I could be off the injury; hurt so bad too. My little starved rescue Peruvian Paso mare got kicked at the auction in her hip; no fat or muscle to absorb the kick. She got a bone bruise and soft tissue damage, she could hardly walk. No fracture. It will be a year in April, she still walks with a slight limp but can gait now. I tried stall rest but she's a weaver and would not eat. I let her have access to a paddock and she would hang out in the stall if the door was open and would walk when she wanted. Knowing myself how I recovered I just took it easy and had some pain meds, so I more or less did the same for her. It really is worst than a fracture to heal, I've had fractures too, a long time to heal.....so don't put a timeframe on recover the body takes over at this time to heal.

[Plain Bay 2]

I agree with JB - check for a sequestrum. I had a young horse who caught his leg in an electrobraid fence. He didn't break anything, but the bone was bruised and he had to have surgery to removed the dead bone tissue (sequestrum). Good luck!