Abstract
Objective - To determine signalment, history, clinical signs, duration, seasonality, and response to various treatments reported by owners for headshaking in horses. Design - Owner survey. Animals - 109 horses with headshaking. Procedure - Owners of affected horses completed a survey questionnaire. Results - 78 affected horses were geldings, 29 were mares, and 2 were stallions. Mean age of onset was 9 years. Headshaking in 64 horses had a seasonal component, and for most horses, headshaking began in spring and ceased in late summer or fall. The most common clinical signs were shaking the head in a vertical plane, acting like an insect was flying up the nostril, snorting excessively, rubbing the muzzle on objects, having an anxious expression while headshaking, worsening of clinical signs with exposure to sunlight, and improvement of clinical signs at night. Treatment with antihistamines, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroids, antimicrobials, fly control, chiropractic, and acupuncture had limited success. Sixty-one horses had been treated with cyproheptadine; 43 had moderate to substantial improvement. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance - Headshaking may have many causes. A large subset of horses have similar clinical signs including shaking the head in a vertical plane, acting as if an insect were flying up the nostrils, and rubbing the muzzle on objects. Seasonality and worsening of clinical signs with exposure to light are also common features of this syndrome. Geldings and Thoroughbreds appear to be overrepresented. Cyproheptadine treatment was beneficial in more than two thirds of treated horses.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 334-337 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association |
| Volume | 219 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| State | Published - Aug 1 2001 |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- veterinary(all)
Cite this
Owner survey of headshaking in horses. / Madigan, John E; Bell, Stephanie A.
In: Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Vol. 219, No. 3, 01.08.2001, p. 334-337.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Owner survey of headshaking in horses
AU - Madigan, John E
AU - Bell, Stephanie A.
PY - 2001/8/1
Y1 - 2001/8/1
N2 - Objective - To determine signalment, history, clinical signs, duration, seasonality, and response to various treatments reported by owners for headshaking in horses. Design - Owner survey. Animals - 109 horses with headshaking. Procedure - Owners of affected horses completed a survey questionnaire. Results - 78 affected horses were geldings, 29 were mares, and 2 were stallions. Mean age of onset was 9 years. Headshaking in 64 horses had a seasonal component, and for most horses, headshaking began in spring and ceased in late summer or fall. The most common clinical signs were shaking the head in a vertical plane, acting like an insect was flying up the nostril, snorting excessively, rubbing the muzzle on objects, having an anxious expression while headshaking, worsening of clinical signs with exposure to sunlight, and improvement of clinical signs at night. Treatment with antihistamines, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroids, antimicrobials, fly control, chiropractic, and acupuncture had limited success. Sixty-one horses had been treated with cyproheptadine; 43 had moderate to substantial improvement. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance - Headshaking may have many causes. A large subset of horses have similar clinical signs including shaking the head in a vertical plane, acting as if an insect were flying up the nostrils, and rubbing the muzzle on objects. Seasonality and worsening of clinical signs with exposure to light are also common features of this syndrome. Geldings and Thoroughbreds appear to be overrepresented. Cyproheptadine treatment was beneficial in more than two thirds of treated horses.
AB - Objective - To determine signalment, history, clinical signs, duration, seasonality, and response to various treatments reported by owners for headshaking in horses. Design - Owner survey. Animals - 109 horses with headshaking. Procedure - Owners of affected horses completed a survey questionnaire. Results - 78 affected horses were geldings, 29 were mares, and 2 were stallions. Mean age of onset was 9 years. Headshaking in 64 horses had a seasonal component, and for most horses, headshaking began in spring and ceased in late summer or fall. The most common clinical signs were shaking the head in a vertical plane, acting like an insect was flying up the nostril, snorting excessively, rubbing the muzzle on objects, having an anxious expression while headshaking, worsening of clinical signs with exposure to sunlight, and improvement of clinical signs at night. Treatment with antihistamines, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, corticosteroids, antimicrobials, fly control, chiropractic, and acupuncture had limited success. Sixty-one horses had been treated with cyproheptadine; 43 had moderate to substantial improvement. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance - Headshaking may have many causes. A large subset of horses have similar clinical signs including shaking the head in a vertical plane, acting as if an insect were flying up the nostrils, and rubbing the muzzle on objects. Seasonality and worsening of clinical signs with exposure to light are also common features of this syndrome. Geldings and Thoroughbreds appear to be overrepresented. Cyproheptadine treatment was beneficial in more than two thirds of treated horses.
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0035431196&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Article
C2 - 11497047
AN - SCOPUS:0035431196
VL - 219
SP - 334
EP - 337
JO - Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
JF - Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
SN - 0003-1488
IS - 3
ER -