What Is Laminitis Caused By

These causes can be grouped into broad categories.

What is laminitis caused by.

There are several causes of laminitis but the primary cause is a sudden increase in carbohydrates in the horse s diet. Traumatic laminitis is caused by repeated physical trauma to the feet during e g. While the exact mechanisms by which the feet are damaged remain a mystery certain precipitating events can produce laminitis. This can all occur before any symptoms are apparent and once the process has started it is extremely difficult to stop.

Laminitis has multiple causes some of which commonly occur together. It is now recognised that up to 90 of laminitis cases are caused by an underlying hormonal disease such as equine metabolic syndrome ems and or cushing s disease. Endurance riding driving or jumping on hard ground. There are 3 main causes of laminitis.

Essentially there are three main causes of laminitis. Chronic laminitis includes the damage caused after the initial attack and any laminitic episodes that happen after the first one. Anytime they have an injury and must bear weight unevenly there is a huge risk of laminitis due to overload in that weight bearing limb. Diseases with inflammation hormonal diseases and mechanical overload are just some of the causes of laminitis.

The most famous example of this was the american racehorse barbaro who had a. Hormonal laminitis is the most common form. The causes of laminitis fall into three broad categories. Laminitis caused by overload.

One of the more common causes current theory states citation needed that if a horse is given grain in excess or eats grass under stress and has accumulated excess nonstructural carbohydrates sugars starch or fructan it may be unable. Relatively less commonly horses can get laminitis from overload typically associated with non weight bearing conditions in one limb thereby overloading the opposite limb. It can also be caused by overenthusiastic hoof trimming. Laminitis is a painful and potentially crippling disease that can be fatal to horses.

Overload inflammatory and metabolic. The inflammation and damage to the laminae causes extreme pain and leads to instability of the coffin bone in the hoof. Overload metabolic and inflammatory. The causes vary and may include the following.

Severe lameness in one limb will cause a horse or pony to carry excessive weight on his other limbs which may cause laminitis. Horses and ponies are heavy creatures. Laminitis is a complex cascade of events that causes the soft tissues laminae within the hoof to swell weaken and die.