Abstract
Private-practice racetrack veterinarians in southern California recorded non-fatal injuries meeting defined criteria in Thoroughbreds for 1 year. Injury incidence was 2.29 injury events per 100 horse-months, which was lower than other studies where trainer reported injury data were collected. Of 477 injuries recorded, 344 (72.1%) were acute and 133 (27.9%) were chronic. Fractures were common (47.6% of injuries), with stress fractures accounting for 14% of injuries. Superficial digital flexor tendonitis and suspensory ligament desmitis accounted for 15.3 and 11.5% of injuries, respectively. Agreement between non-fatal injuries recorded in the current study and those recorded via an existing regulatory system (Equine Injury Database) was poor, with neither system capturing all injuries. Non-fatal injuries occurred 17-29 times more often than fatal injuries. Non-fatal musculoskeletal injury remains an ongoing issue for Thoroughbred racehorses, and an accurate, comprehensive system for recording these injuries is needed.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 98-100 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Veterinary Journal |
Volume | 205 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 1 2015 |
Keywords
- Diagnosis
- Musculoskeletal injury
- Prognosis
- Thoroughbred racehorses
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Animal Science and Zoology
- veterinary(all)