Improvements in diagnostics and individualized treatment can help keep this condition from being career-ending

hoof radiograph
Radiographs (X rays) have been the common imaging approach to help diagnose podotrochlosis, but they lack the ability to reveal soft tissue structures that might also be affected. | Courtesy Dr. Amy Rucker

Podotrochlosis, commonly known as navicular disease, remains a challenging condition, but what was once a dreaded career-ending diagnosis can now be diagnosed and treated with improving success.

The biggest step forward in recent years involves a deeper understanding of navicular disease in horses. This outdated term lacks context without further clarification, says Ben Flakoll, DVM, an associate veterinarian and podiatry team member at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital’s Saratoga, New York, location.

“When someone tells me their horse has navicular or was diagnosed with navicular syndrome, that tells me the horse probably had caudal (toward the rear) heel pain that resolved after a palmar (digital nerve) block,” he says, referring to injection of a local anesthetic over these nerves in the low pastern area of one limb. “The problem with this is that there are a lot of structures in the heel that can cause pain

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