TY - JOUR
T1 - Sidewinder gait in horses
AU - Aleman, Monica
AU - Berryhill, Emily
AU - Woolard, Kevin D
AU - Easton-Jones, Charlotte A.
AU - Kozikowski-Nicholas, Tania
AU - Dyson, Sue
AU - Kilcoyne, Isabelle
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - Background: Sidewinder gait in horses is poorly understood and characterized by walking with the trunk and pelvic limbs drifting to 1 side. Hypothesis/objectives: To report causes, clinical and diagnostic features. Animals: Horses examined at 2 institutions. Materials and Methods: Retrospective study (2000-2019). Cases with sidewinder gait, neurological and orthopedic examination, and diagnostic work up or postmortem evaluation were included. Descriptive statistics were performed. Results: Twenty-four horses (mean age 18.9 years) of various breeds and both sexes were included. Onset was acute (N = 10), subacute (N = 6), and insidious (N = 8). Electromyography and muscle biopsy supported neurologic disease and further aided in localizing site of lesion (N = 9/9). Neurologic causes included dynamic thoracolumbar spinal cord compression (N = 5), equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (N = 4, confirmed and presumed [2 each]), thoracic myelopathy of unknown etiology (N = 4), gliosis (N = 2), and thrombosis of thoracic spinal cord segments (N = 1). Non-neurologic causes included osteoarthritis of the coxofemoral joint (N = 4), multiple displaced pelvic fractures (N = 2), bilateral rupture of the ligamentum capitis ossis femoris (N = 1), and severe myonecrosis of multiple pelvic limb muscles (N = 1). Case fatality was 79%. Conclusion and Clinical Importance: Sidewinder gait is usually observed in older horses and can have neurologic or musculoskeletal etiologies. Electromyography can be used as a diagnostic aid to determine neurologic versus non-neurologic disease and further localize those of neurologic origin. The condition often has a poor prognosis for function and life.
AB - Background: Sidewinder gait in horses is poorly understood and characterized by walking with the trunk and pelvic limbs drifting to 1 side. Hypothesis/objectives: To report causes, clinical and diagnostic features. Animals: Horses examined at 2 institutions. Materials and Methods: Retrospective study (2000-2019). Cases with sidewinder gait, neurological and orthopedic examination, and diagnostic work up or postmortem evaluation were included. Descriptive statistics were performed. Results: Twenty-four horses (mean age 18.9 years) of various breeds and both sexes were included. Onset was acute (N = 10), subacute (N = 6), and insidious (N = 8). Electromyography and muscle biopsy supported neurologic disease and further aided in localizing site of lesion (N = 9/9). Neurologic causes included dynamic thoracolumbar spinal cord compression (N = 5), equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (N = 4, confirmed and presumed [2 each]), thoracic myelopathy of unknown etiology (N = 4), gliosis (N = 2), and thrombosis of thoracic spinal cord segments (N = 1). Non-neurologic causes included osteoarthritis of the coxofemoral joint (N = 4), multiple displaced pelvic fractures (N = 2), bilateral rupture of the ligamentum capitis ossis femoris (N = 1), and severe myonecrosis of multiple pelvic limb muscles (N = 1). Case fatality was 79%. Conclusion and Clinical Importance: Sidewinder gait is usually observed in older horses and can have neurologic or musculoskeletal etiologies. Electromyography can be used as a diagnostic aid to determine neurologic versus non-neurologic disease and further localize those of neurologic origin. The condition often has a poor prognosis for function and life.
KW - electrodiagnostics
KW - equine
KW - neurology
KW - neurophysiology
KW - species
KW - spinal cord disease
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U2 - 10.1111/jvim.15870
DO - 10.1111/jvim.15870
M3 - Article
C2 - 32820825
AN - SCOPUS:85089589391
JO - Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
JF - Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
SN - 0891-6640
ER -