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Overstrain tendonitis are common pathologies in the sport horses. Therapeutic approaches to tendon healing do not always result in a satisfactory anatomical and functional repair, and healed tendon is often characterized by functional impairment and high risk of reinjury. Recently, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and platelet rich plasma (PRP) have been proposed as novel therapeutic treatments to improve the tendon repair process. MSCs are multipotent, easy to culture and being originated from adult donors do not pose ethical issues. To date, autologous MSCs have been investigated mainly in the treatment of large bone defects, cardiovascular diseases, osteogenesis imperfecta and orthopaedic injuries both in human and veterinary medicine. The clinical applications in which autologous MSCs can be used are limited because patient-specific tissue collection and cell expansion require time. For clinical applications in which MSCs should be used right away, it would be more practical to use cells collected from a donor, expanded in vitro and banked to be readily available when needed. However, there are concerns over the safety and the efficacy of allogeneic MSCs. The safety and efficacy of a therapy based on the use of allogeneic adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) associated to platelet rich plasma (PRP) were evaluated in 19 horses affected by acute or subacute overstrain superficial digital flexor tendonitis (SDFT). The application of allogeneic ASCs neither raised clinical sign of acute or chronic adverse tissue reactions, nor the formation of abnormal tissue in the long term. After a follow–up of 24 months, 89.5% horses returned to their previous level of competition, while the reinjury rate was 10.5%, comparable to those recently reported for SDFT treated with autologous bone marrow derived MSCs. This study suggests that the association between allogeneic ASCs and PRP can be considered a safe and effective strategy for the treatment of SDF tendonitis in the horse.

Background: Tissue harmonic imaging (THI) reduces near-field and side-lobe artifacts. This could improve recognition of cardiac masses, including thrombi and spontaneous echocontrast (SEC), a known thromboembolic risk factor. Objectives: We tested the hypothesis that THI improves detection of left ventricular (LV) thrombi and SEC compared with transthoracic fundamental imaging in patients with recent myocardial infarction. Methods: In all, 118 consecutive patients with recent myocardial infarction were studied at predischarge. The echocardiographic examination was performed in both fundamental imaging and THI modality and evaluated by 3 skilled and 3 nonexperienced observers for recognition of LV thrombosis and SEC. Results: THI increased LV thrombi diagnosis by 25% by skilled observers and by 50% by nonexperienced readers, reducing the number of false-positive diagnoses by 67%. Also, compared with fundamental imaging, THI improved recognition of LV SEC by both experienced and nonexperienced observers by 56% and 62%, respectively. Conclusions: The improved recognition of LV thrombosis and SEC by THI in patients with myocardial infarction is clinically relevant allowing appropriate treatment and prognostic stratification. Therefore, routine use of THI should be recommended when studying such patients in clinical practice.