Abstract
Background:
Tendinopathy and desmopathy are significant causes of morbidity in the horse.
Aim:
To evaluate the use of percutaneous ultrasonic debridement (PUD) as a treatment for chronic tendinopathy and desmopathy in the horse.
Methods:
Eight adult horses with ten affected limbs presented for lameness, ranging from 60-700 days post-injury. Diagnostic ultrasound identified the following: Suspensory branch desmitis (n=1), suspensory body desmitis (n=2), Achilles tendinopathy (n=1), desmitis of the accessory ligament of the deep digital flexor tendon (n=1), deep digital flexor tendinopathy (n=2), and superficial digital flexor tendinopathy (n=3). All horses had demonstrated lameness ranging from grade 1-4 (AAEP scale), with a mean pre-treatment grade of 2.7. All horses underwent PUD using the Tenex Health TX® System.
Results:
Follow-up results were available from 6-41 months (mean, 23.2 months). Follow-up ultrasound imaging demonstrated improvement in fiber alignment and architectural change in all cases. All horses had a reduction in lameness from the treated tendon or ligament (AAEP grade 0-1; mean AAEP grade, 0.2) following a single treatment; lameness completely resolved in 8 of 10 treated limbs. No adverse events occurred in any case. No horses in this study developed recurrence of their original lesion.
Conclusion:
Horses in this study demonstrated improvement following the PUD procedure. The procedure was well-tolerated and safe. Removal of tendinopathic scar tissue with PUD resulted in return to function and without recurrence of the original lesion in all horses.

Key words: Chronic, Debridement, Desmopathy, Equine, Tendinopathy