Background: Bone stress injuries and fatigue fractures of the pelvis are reported in only a small number of endurance horses.
Objectives: To describe bone stress injuries and fatigue fracture of the pelvis in endurance horses trained and competing on the deep sand surfaces.
Study design: Retrospective case series.
Methods: Medical records of horses used for endurance and diagnosed with bone stress injuries and/or fatigue fractures of the pelvis by ultrasound were reviewed. The bone stress injuries and fatigue fractures were classified as affecting the iliac wing, the iliac shaft, the tuber ischiadicum, the rest of the ischium or the pubis and subdivided into four fracture configurations: isolated iliac fracture, isolated fracture of the floor of the pelvis, isolated tuber ischiadicum fracture and multiple fractures. Descriptive statistics were performed overall and on fracture configurations for age, sex, breed, level of activity, affected limbs, previous injuries, development of the injury, seasons in the UAE, physical and dynamic findings and outcome. For each fracture configuration and the outcome, multivariable logistic regression models were developed after univariable logistic regression and collinearity analyses. Significance was set at P ≤ .05.
Results: Sixty endurance horses were included; 48 per cent (95 per cent CI: 36–61 per cent) had isolated iliac fracture, 17 per cent (7–26 per cent) isolated fracture of the floor of the pelvis, 15 per cent (6–24 per cent) isolated tuber ischiadicum fracture and 20 per cent (10–30 per cent) had multiple fractures. Breed (OR, 4.42; 95 per cent CI, 1.02-19.57) was significantly associated with isolated iliac fracture and asymmetry of bone landmarks (OR, 7.42; 95 per cent CI, 1.47-37.45) with isolated tuber ischiadicum fracture. Degree of lameness (OR, 3.08; 95 per cent CI, 1.07-8.9) and trotting on three tracks (OR, 8.62; 95 per cent CI, 1.43-51.9) were significantly associated with the diagnosis of isolated fracture of the floor of the pelvis.
Main limitations: Data acquired in a single country.
Conclusions: Bone stress injuries and fatigue fractures of the pelvis can affect endurance horses trained and competing on deep sand. Isolated bone stress injuries and/or fatigue fractures of the ileum were the commonest followed by multiple pelvic bones involvement. The presence of lameness and trotting on three tracks suggest the presence of bone stress injuries and/or fatigue fractures of the floor of the pelvis; asymmetry of bony landmarks is more commonly detected in horses with bone stress injuries and/or fatigue fractures of the tuber ischiadicum.
Massimo Puccetti 1, Francesca Beccati 2, Jean-Marie Denoix 3
Equine Vet J. 2021 Nov 5.doi: 10.1111/evj.13536. Online ahead of print.
1Dubai Equine Hospital, Zabeel, Dubai, UAE.
2Department of Veterinary Medicine, Sport Horse Research Centre, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.
3CIRALE-EnvA NEV, Unité INRAE-EnvA, Goustranville, France.