Computed tomography is a technique that allows us to produce 3D x-ray images of your horse's head, neck and legs.

The system at the RVC Equine Referral Hospital allows the imaging of the head and upper part of the neck in the standing horse, which is ideal for diagnosing teeth and sinus problems, but also for further evaluation of horses who sustained trauma to their head or show signs of headshaking.

With our new custom-made table and commercial Big Bore scanner, we can now scan the entire neck in anaesthetised horses. This is especially helpful in horses showing neck pain, unexplained forelimb lameness and/or ataxia (neurological problems) and in which radiographs and ultrasound were inconclusive or normal. The RVC Equine CT scanner is 10 cm wider than a standard CT, allowing us to image the entire cervical spine, often up to the level of the thoracic vertebrae and the limb up to and including the stifle. Learn more - click here to read more

It is also a very helpful technique for surgery planning and evaluation of treatment outcome. The RVC Equine Referral Hospital was the first equine hospital in the UK to install a CT scanner for horses, in 2003. Our equine specialists have scanned hundreds of horses since, thus accumulating a huge amount of expertise in this advanced diagnostic imaging method. Our equine vet team are experts in acquiring the images smoothly and interpreting them accurately in an efficient manner.

How does it work?

CT uses a rotating x-ray machine to produce a stack of slice-like images of the body.

This has the advantage that all structures are clearly displayed in cross-section and there is no superimposition of structures that hinder interpretation of the images.

• When images are being acquired, the patient is slowly moved through the circular tunnel of the CT scanner.
• The head and upper part of the neck can be scanned in the standing, sedated horse, for this we stand the horse on an air hover platform.
• Since the scanner is noisy we usually put cotton wool in the horse’s ears so that it does not get startled and depending on the temperament of the horse we also put blinkers on.
• For legs and the lower part of the neck we anaesthetise the horse and position it on a custom-made table.

What does it show?

• It produces cross-sectional images which allow detailed visualisation of structures in 3D.
• It can show abscesses, tumours, sinusitis, fractures, cysts, infectious processes and other disorders affecting the head, neck and legs.
• It also allows assessment of the blood supply to areas after contrast injection making it a useful tool for the assessment of tumours or vascular anomalies. 
• Contrast medium is also helpful in horses with neck problems to detect possible sites of compression of the spinal cord.

When do we use it in the horse?

We use CT when we suspect:

• Dental disorders
• Sinus problems
• Headshaking
• Brain lesions
• Neck lesions
• Bony changes in the legs
• Surgery planning

Transverse CT image: The joint on the left site of the image shows new bone formation leading to narrowing of the intervertebral foramen where the spinal nerve runs through (red arrow). The intervertebral foramen on the right site of the images is normal leaving enough space for the nerve (green arrow).

Transverse image of the cervical spine with a fracture of an articular process (red arrows. B Sagittal image of the cervical spine with discospondylitis (red arrow). Compared to the more cranial disc space (green arrow), the disc space is collapsed an there is increase in the density of the adjacent bone structures.

 The new table in action. The table can be used either in general anaesthesia or for standing horses.