Treatment of acute superficial digital flexor tendon injury in horses with polysulphated glycosaminoglycan

Horses with acute injuries of the superficial digital flexor tendon were treated with a course of seven intramuscular injections of 500 mg of polysulphated glycosaminoglycan at four-day intervals, Clinical assessments of the lesions were made by a veterinary surgeon at the time of each injection and 14 and 28 days after the last injection. A total of 150 courses of the drug were administered and adequately completed assessment forms were returned for 80 cases, Long-term follow-up data were obtained for 19 cases. The subjective assessments by the veterinary surgeons showed that in 80 per cent of cases the drug was felt to be of value in the treatment of acute tendon injury.