Back problems are well noticed in horses, especially in horses used for riding. Kissing spines (impingement of the dorsal spinous processes) are often found at radiographic examinations of the thoracic spine. Kissing spines is a radiological diagnosis, indicating that parts of at least two adjacent dorsal spinous processes are in contact with each other. It is not uncommon that horses without clinical signs of back problems have some degree of kissing spines. It is therefore not sufficient with a radiographic examination to say that the cause of pain is kissing spines. If local anesthesia in the kissing spine region decreases the pain, the clinical relevance is strengthened. Kissing spines is in most cases seen in the saddle region.
The cause of kissing spines is not understood, but associations with anatomy (short back) and use (show jumping) have been found. If kissing spines is a primary cause of pain or just a sign of a poor back function is not clear.
The aim of this study was to find out if the interspinal spaces in the thoracolumbal region was influenced by the position of the head. It is not known if the interspinal spaces change with the position of the head, but theories on the importance of the position of the head and the attitude of the horse during work in the etiology and treatment of kissing spines have been proposed.
The dorsal spinous processes in the region T5 – L2 of fourteen horses underwent radiographic examination. Radiographs were taken with the horse nose held 10 – 30 cm above the floor and with the head held 185 – 200 cm above the floor. The interspinal spaces were indicated according to their anatomical localisation in relation to the anticlinal vertebrae. All of the interspinal spaces were measured and the width of the interspinal spaces when the head was held low was compared to the width when the head was held high.
The results showed with statistical significance that the mean distance of the interspinal spaces was wider (15,0 mm) when the head was held low then when it was held high (12,7 mm). Nearly all of this difference was located in the cranial part of the examined area. The most caudal interspinal space that was significantly influenced by the position of the head was two interspinous spaces cranial to the anticlinal vertebrae. Different ...
