Day 54- Sweeny Todd

    Today was a bit slow but we did see one interesting case! There is a bundle of nerves that run directly over the shoulder blade. In almost all species there is a bony prominence that covers the nerves, except in the horse! This was made very apparent in the olden days as horses would become crippled from wearing the large collars used to hitch them up to wagons. The collars would pinch the nerve up against the the shoulder blade, this would damage the nerve and the horse would develop muscle atrophy of the shoulder muscles and eventually become lame, a condition known as Sweeney. Today we see Sweeney in horses that have a nerve injury secondary to a laceration or trauma to the leg.