Systemic serum amyloid A in early (<24 h) diagnosis of acute synovial structure involvement in horses with penetrating limb injuries

•Serum amyloid A failed as parameter for acute synovial structure involvement.•Synovial fluid parameters were more reliable.•Clinical parameters were not conclusive for acute synovial structure involvement. Synovial structure involvement secondary to limb injury is a common emergency in equine practice, requiring an accurate initial diagnosis for immediate treatment. This study aimed to investigate the clinical usefulness of Serum amyloid A (SAA) in the initial diagnosis of synovial structure involvement caused by acute (