Patricia Doyle, D.V.M., M.S., Diplomate ACVS

Lameness is a prominent cause of loss of performance in horses.  It may arise from damaged bone, joints, tendons, ligaments or muscle.  The damage may arise from such problems as fractures, abnormal joint formation (bone cysts or flaps), osteoarthritis or soft tissue strain (tendonitis, suspensory desmitis, or myositis).  Healing of any of these lesions is typically prolonged and frequently inadequate for return to the previous level of performance for your horse.

One exciting method of treatment available is Stem Cell Therapy.  Stem cells are available from many sources in the body but one technique developed by Vet-Stem (Poway, CA) involves the collection of fat tissue (adipose) from the hrose.  Adipose tissue contains cells (mesenchymal stem cells) that are regenerative for tendon, ligament, muscle, bone, or cartilaginous tissue.

Most horses have enough fat around their tail head for the amount necessary to obtain stem cell injection into the damaged tissue.  The fat is collected either under sedation and local anesthesia or under a quick general anesthesia.  The fat sample is then processed by the company such that the stem cells are concetrated into a 2cc dose that is sterilely packaged and shipped back to our veterinary hospital for injection into the damaged tissue either under ultrasonographic, radiographic or arthroscopic guidance 48-72 hours later.  The injection as for the fat collection procedure is either performed under standing sedationand local block or under general anesthesia depending on the site of injection and the temperament of the horse.  The risks of complications following Stem Cell Therapy are low since the tissue is handled sterilely at all times and there is no tissue rejections cine the stem cells are derived from the horses' own tissue.

Although long-term studies have not been completed, experimental and clinical evidence is present showing improvement in the quality of healing tendinous, ligamentous and cartilaginous surfaces.  It is suspected that hte adipose derived stem cells provide an anti-inflammatory effect during tissue healing and allows for more normal tissue architecture to develop.

When determining whether Stem Cell Therapy is appropriate for your horse, it is important to consider all aspects of the injury.  First, you must have an accurate diagnosis prior to perofrming the procedure.  Second, the injuries most responsive are those that are treated in the first 90 days after the injury.  Long standing injuries have responded favorably but may require more than one injection.  Third, joint lesions typically require a series of injections and arthritis may require biannual injections.  Fourth, re-evaluation is critical to ensure healing is progressing as expected and that the level of training fits the degree of healing to avoid re-injury.