{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T04:46:06Z","timestamp":1782794766717,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1782777600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Vet. Sci."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Back pain and spinal dysfunction in horses are multifactorial conditions frequently associated with musculoskeletal alterations that may impair mobility, performance, and welfare. Mesotherapy has emerged as a minimally invasive adjunctive approach for managing musculoskeletal disorders; however, comparative clinical responses to different intradermal protocols in equine spinal conditions remain insufficiently investigated. The present study aims to compare the clinical and thermographic responses of two mesotherapy protocols in horses diagnosed with cervical or thoracolumbar spinal disorders.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Forty horses with ultrasonographically confirmed spinal alterations were stratified by anatomical region (cervical or thoracolumbar) and randomly allocated into four subgroups (\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f10\/group) to receive intradermal mesotherapy with either saline solution or dexamethasone sulfate (0.05\u202fmg\/kg). Clinical assessments of joint mobility and muscle hypotrophy, along with thermographic evaluations, were performed at baseline and at 48\u202fh, 15, 30, and 60\u202fdays after treatment. Data were analyzed using linear mixed models with horses included as random effects for repeated measures, followed by Dunnett\u2019s\n                      <jats:italic>post-hoc<\/jats:italic>\n                      test (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.05).\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Temporal improvements were observed in joint mobility and thermographic with a progressive improvement in thoracolumbar extension mobility observed from 48\u202fh (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.0001) 15\u202fdays (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.0003), 30\u202fdays (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.0006), and 60\u202fdays (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.0027), and significant improvements in thoracolumbar thermographic patterns at 48\u202fh (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.0219) and 15\u202fdays (\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.0001). No statistically significant differences were detected between dexamethasone and saline-based mesotherapy protocols for most evaluated outcomes under the experimental conditions tested. Thermographic assessment appeared comparatively more responsive in detecting temporal pattern changes under the semiquantitative study conditions.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Under the present experimental conditions, both mesotherapy protocols were associated with comparable clinical and thermographic responses over time. However, given the absence of untreated or sham-treated control groups, these findings should be interpreted as comparative responses between active protocols rather than definitive evidence of therapeutic efficacy or mechanistic action. Further controlled studies are warranted to clarify therapeutic effects and procedural contributions.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fvets.2026.1839834","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T04:24:28Z","timestamp":1782793468000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Comparative clinical and thermographic responses to dexamethasone and saline solution mesotherapy in horses with spinal disorders"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Tain\u00e3 Kuwer","family":"Jacobsen","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Graduate Program in Animal Medicine: Equines, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul","place":["Porto Alegre, Brazil"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Marcos da Silva","family":"Azevedo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, University Veterinary Hospital, Federal University of Santa Maria","place":["Santa Maria, Brazil"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sandro","family":"Colla","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, Equine Performance and Rehabilitation Center, University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine","place":["Knoxville, TN, United States"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anderson Ramos","family":"Carvalho","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Chemometrics and Analytical Instrumentation, Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul","place":["Porto Alegre, Brazil"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Flavio Desessards","family":"De La Corte","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, University Veterinary Hospital, Federal University of Santa Maria","place":["Santa Maria, Brazil"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Grasiela","family":"De Bastiani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Graduate Program in Animal Medicine: Equines, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul","place":["Porto Alegre, Brazil"]},{"name":"Department of Animal Medicine, School of Veterinary Medicine, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul","place":["Porto Alegre, Brazil"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"384","DOI":"10.1590\/S0104-42302010000400005","article-title":"How to diagnose and treat back pain in the horse","volume":"56","author":"Allen","year":"2010","journal-title":"Am Assoc Equine Pract Proc"},{"key":"ref2","first-page":"424","article-title":"Overriding spinous processes (\"kissing spines\") in horses: diagnosis, treatment, and outcome in 212 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