Cutting horses require strong, sturdy bodies and limbs to successfully face off with a cow trying to return to her herd. And, like all equine athletes, the demands of a cutting horse's job put him at risk for injury. Recently, a team of veterinarians from Texas took a closer look at an important, but not well-characterized, cause of lameness in these horses: superficial digital flexor (SDF) tendonitis.

Researchers know that forelimb SDF tendonitis is a common injury in sport- and racehorses. For instance, it accounts for 6-13% of racing-related injuries, said Tyler Tipton, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, an associate veterinarian at Equine Sports Medicine and Surgery (ESMS) in Weatherford, Texas. Further, he explained, "tendonitis of the SDF in horses other than cutting horses is commonly considered to have a poor prognosis with a high recurrence rate and is often a career-ending injury."

However, no published reports exist on how these lesions affect cutting horses. So Tipton and colleagues set out to better characterize forelimb SDF tendonitis in these horses and to determine its recurrence rate and prognosis.

In the retrospective study, the team evaluated 19 cutting horses diagnosed at ESMS with SDF tendonitis in the forelimb via ultrasound examinations from Jan. 1, 2007, to Dec. 31, 2011. All of those horses—nine mares, six geldings, and four stallions—were Quarter Horses ranging in age from 3 to 6 years old. The horses presented with mild lameness (an average of 1.26 on a five-point lameness scale) and swelling of the palmar (rear) aspect of the forelimb at the injured area