What are the most common diagnoses of foot pain?
Lameness is notoriously difficult to diagnose properly. The usual procedure involves a series of “trial and error” steps using nerve blocks, x-rays and other methods for diagnosis followed by treatment, waiting to see if the treatment is effective and if not, going round the loop again. While each individual step in this process may cost a few hundred pounds, because each time round the loop only has a low (about 30%) chance of getting a clear diagnosis the total cost soon adds up. During this process also the owner has other costs (farrier, livery, food, etc) and there is a risk that the problem may get worse, so MRI does on average work out as a economic option for all but the most straightforward cases. The most common MRI diagnoses in the foot are: – Navicular bone degeneration – DDFT tendonitis – Collateral ligament desmitis – Traumatic arthritis – Phalangeal bone bruises – Navicular collateral desmitis – Fractures To explain … – Navicular bone degeneration covers a multitude of
