Response to acupuncture treatment in horses with chronic laminitis.
Authors: Faramarzi, Lee, May, Dong
Journal: The Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne
Summary
# Editorial Summary: Acupuncture and Chronic Equine Laminitis Chronic laminitis remains a challenging condition to manage, and the evidence base for complementary therapies in equine medicine remains limited. Faramarzi and colleagues addressed this gap by recruiting twelve horses with confirmed chronic laminitis and treating them with two acupuncture sessions (dry needling, hemo-acupuncture, and aqua-acupuncture) spaced one week apart, with lameness objectively assessed using inertial sensor technology (Lameness Locator) alongside conventional AAEP scoring before treatment and one week post-treatment. Both measurement methods demonstrated statistically significant improvements: the Lameness Locator showed a 2.69% reduction in lameness severity (P = 0.0269), whilst routine clinical examination revealed more substantial improvements (P = 0.0039). For practitioners managing laminitic horses, these findings suggest acupuncture warrants consideration as an adjunctive tool to conventional therapies, though the small sample size and brief follow-up period mean results should be interpreted cautiously and integrated within a comprehensive treatment protocol addressing underlying metabolic or biomechanical drivers of the condition. Further research exploring optimal treatment frequency, longer-term outcomes, and patient selection criteria would strengthen the evidence base for incorporating acupuncture into chronic laminitis management strategies.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Acupuncture may be a useful complementary treatment option for chronic laminitis in horses, showing statistically significant improvements in objective lameness measures
- •Consider acupuncture as part of a multimodal treatment approach rather than as a standalone therapy for laminitic horses
- •Objective lameness assessment tools (inertial sensors) can help quantify response to acupuncture treatment in chronic laminitis cases
Key Findings
- •Lameness Locator objective measurement showed significant reduction in lameness severity post-treatment (P = 0.0269)
- •Routine lameness examination showed significant reduction in lameness severity post-treatment (P = 0.0039)
- •Two acupuncture treatments 1 week apart using dry needling, hemo-acupuncture, and aqua-acupuncture produced measurable clinical improvement