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Osteochondrosis in the tarsocrural joint and osteochondral fragments in the fetlock joints in Standardbred trotters. I. Epidemiology
Author(s) -
Sandgren B.,
Dalin G.,
Carlsten J.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
equine veterinary journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.82
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 2042-3306
pISSN - 0425-1644
DOI - 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1993.tb04851.x
Subject(s) - fetlock , osteochondrosis , medicine , osteochondritis , population , lameness , dorsum , horse , subchondral bone , anatomy , osteoarthritis , surgery , articular cartilage , biology , pathology , paleontology , alternative medicine , environmental health
Summary Radiographic examinations of the tarsocrural and metacarpo/metatarsophalangeal joints were made in two groups of 1.5‐year‐old Standardbreds. One group comprised 674 horses drawn at random from the Swedish population of Standardbred trotters to provide an estimate of the incidence of tarsocrural joint osteochondrosis and osteochondral fragments in the fetlock joints. An additional 119 progeny of 4 stallions which themselves had osteochondrosis or fetlock fragments were included for the study of the distribution of lesions and the characteristics of affected animals, i.e. a total of 793 animals. The radiographic views were chosen to detect osteochondrosis in the tarsocrural joints (OC) and palmar/plantar osteochondral fragments (POF), ununited palmar/plantar eminences (UPE) and dorsal fragments (DF) in the fetlock joints. The incidence of tarsocrural joint OC was estimated as 10.5% while palmar/plantar osteochondral fragments in the fetlock joints were present in 21.5% of the 674 animals. In the group of 793 animals, tarsocrural joint OC was seen in 11.5% of the horses and was found bilaterally in 45% of the affected animals. In the fetlock joints, POF was found in 22.4%, UPE in 4.2% and DF in 4.4% of the horses. One or several of the lesions were found in 35.9% of the 793 horses. There were no significant sex differences in the incidence of OC and POF, but when all lesions were considered males were significantly more often affected than females (40.5% vs 31.2%). Of the OC lesions in the tarsocrural joint, 95% were found at the intermediate ridge of the tibia and 5% were seen at the lateral trochlea of the talus. POF and UPE mainly occurred in the hindlimbs. In 75% of the POF cases, the findings were located in the medial part of the joint while UPE findings almost exclusively were found laterally. Horses with UPE had a significantly higher incidence of POF. The incidence of OC in the tarsocrural joint was related to the date of birth and the incidence was higher in the later than in the early part of the foaling season. The incidence of OC findings was also related to body size. Horses affected were taller at the withers and had a greater circumference of the carpus. Synovial effusions of the tarsocrural joint were significantly more pronounced in horses with radiographic signs of OC. In horses with POF and UPE, synovial effusions of the fetlock joints were not more frequent or severe.