Ten-year-old registered Tennessee Walking Horse gelding, 'Ben, and his owner are no strangers to the fields and former battlegrounds of Virginia's Civil War re-enactments, but in November 2012, after a pasture-mate back home kicked Ben in his right foreleg, the real fight to keep him sound and performing began.
Ben - Civil War re-enactment horse
After a long battle of lameness, and thanks to an innovative new regenerative therapy called VIV8 from VIVREGEN, LLC, Ben, the Civil War Re-Enactment horse is back on the battlefield.
© 2013 by VIVREGEN
After a long battle of lameness, and thanks to an innovative new regenerative therapy called VIV8 from VIVREGEN, LLC, Ben is back on the re-enactment battlefield.
Originally purchased in September 2012 as a trail horse and Civil War re-enactment mount, Ben was a solid citizen until shortly before Thanksgiving, when he sustained a kick to his right front leg from another horse. His owner's initial course of treatment, like that of most, was to cold-hose the injury and wrap it.
"It was a kick to the right carpus," said M.W. Myers, DVM, at Deepwood Veterinary Clinic in Centreville, who first dispensed Surpass, a diclofenac ointment, and a furosemide/dexamethasone paste to reduce swelling.
By early December, Ben's lameness remained at 2 to 3 on a scale of 5 in his right front. "He was on pasture rest and it was noted that he would not take his right lead in the pasture," Dr. Myers said.
Come April, some swelling was still present so it was decided to bring Ben to the hospital for further evaluation.
"Only fifty percent range of motion was noted on his flexion and his lameness in the right fore still graded 3 out of 5," Dr. Myers said. "Radiographs demonstrated an older lesion on the medial aspect of the carpus, likely due to his conformation and show career as well as more recent inflammation in the swollen area of the carpus, with bony remodeling over the cranial medial area. The soft tissue component of the swelling was involving the extensor tendon."
At this point,â¨Hylartin V and Vetalog were injected into his tendon sheath and around the swelling but "no improvement was noted."
In June, Ben's radiocarpal and middle carpal joints were injected with Gel50 ®: "There was some improvement to this therapy...the lameness reduced to a Grade 2 out of 5." Over the last 10 months, Ben had been through three different courses of treatment but still showed unrelenting lameness.
So on September 8, 2013, Dr. Myers decided to try a new regenerative therapy called VIVR8: “Ben had been re-examined and was remaining at a Grade 2 out of 5 lameness on the right fore, so his carpus was clipped and prepped for intra-articular injection. One vial of VIVR8 was reconstituted and injected into the articular area.”
The result was significant. "This case had a dramatic response to VIVR8," said Dr. Myers. “Although carpal swelling was evident within 30 minutes, and enlarged in the first day, the swelling rapidly regressed with increasing comfort and return to full use was evident by the fifth day. NSAIDs and ice pack were used during the five days to keep Ben comfortable. By Day Five the carpus had returned to original size and the range of motion had improved to approximately 70 percent of the original examination. Ben's lameness reduced to a Grade 1 by Day 5.”
After a few short weeks on VIVR8, Ben was sound to ride and use again, both on the trails and in Civil War re-enactments. He takes his right lead easily under saddle and in the pasture.
“There is still a Grade 1 of 5 lameness when he first begins work, but he warms out of it quickly,” said Dr. Myers. “Currently, Ben is sound to ride.”
About VIVR8 and VIVREGEN, LLC
VIVR8 by VIVREGEN, LLC is a natural biological matrix formulated as a convenient injection powder. Unlike other conventional injection products that only temporarily alleviate symptoms, VIVR8 has the ability to activate a host’s own stem cells, accelerate and enhance the healing process. VIVR8 reduces down time for animals experiencing soft tissue such as tendon or ligament injuries, while improves performance and quality of life for animals suffering from arthritis and other chronic inflammatory conditions.
VIVREGEN, LLC is a biotech company engaged in the development and commercialization of regenerative tissue technologies. Its Regenerative Tissue Matrix (RTM), is the result of a breakthrough in collaborative stem cell research among researchers, physicians and veterinarians. Its inaugural product, VIVR8, has helped return hundreds of horses and companion animals to quality and productive lives after experiencing difficult to heal soft tissue injuries and chronic conditions.
VIVREGEN is pioneering a new era of non-invasive, cutting-edge regenerative technology. To learn more about this exciting endeavor please email info@vivregen.com and visit www.vivregen.com.
Story by:Benjamin Lee(COO) VivRegen, LLC