At the 50th annual American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention in Denver, Colo., Dec. 4-8, 2004, Kevin Haussler, DVM, DC, PhD, lecturer in anatomy in the department of biomedical sciences, college of veterinary medicine at Cornell University succinctly summed up the perplexing issue of diagnosing and treating sacroiliac pain when he concluded his presentation with these words: “I’ve never been so sure about what I do not know and I have never been so unsure about what I do know.”

It was apparent that many other veterinarians at the annual convention in Denver felt the same way because they attended the session in numbers that filled the huge room to capacity and more. Staff members from the convention center played the role of ushers as they sought out rare empty seats for late-comers.

The presenters, in addition to Haussler, were Sue Dyson, VetMB, PhD, FRCVS, of the Centre for Equine Studies, Newmarket, England; and Emmanuel Engeli, Vet. Dipl ACVS, ECVS, of Switzerland.

Another of Haussler’s comments let the audience know that treatment of sacroiliac problems can be complicated and prolonged. “Unfortunately, there is no quick fix” when sacroiliac problems are involved, he said