Clinical evaluation of a titanium, headless variable-pitched tapered cannulated compression screw for repair of frontal plane slab fractures of the third carpal bone in thoroughbred racehorses.

This research article evaluates the effectiveness of the Acutrak screw system on repair of frontal plane slab fractures of the third carpal bone in thoroughbred racehorses, finding it to be a useful technique that offers sufficient reduction and stability of such fractures, and reduces chances of fragment splitting and screw head impingement on carpal soft tissues.

Research Objectives and Methodology

• The aim of the research paper was to study the efficacy of the Acutrak screw system in repairing slab fractures in the frontal plane of the third carpal bone (C3) in thoroughbred racehorses.
• In this prospective case series, data from 17 thoroughbred racehorses that suffered frontal C3 slab fractures between 1999 and 2004 were analyzed, focusing on variables before the injury and after the surgical intervention.
• Information collected included gender, age at injury, limb involved, occurrence of injury, fracture complexity and displacement, number of race starts, and earnings. Postoperative data such as surgical complications, days until first race after surgery, number of race starts and earnings were also collected.
• The researchers utilized the Wilcoxon signed-rank test to compare the number of race starts and earnings before and after the surgery.

Results of the Study

• The study included 12 female, 3 male and 2 gelding thoroughbred racehorses, with an average age of 3.3 years at the time of injury. Right carpi were found to be affected more than the left.
• Most injuries happened during training (10), while the rest occurred during racing (7). Out of the 15 horses that participated in races prior to their injury, 12 managed to return to racing post surgery.
• On average, the horses took approximately 349.3 days to return to racing after the injury. It was found that horses which managed to return to racing had more starts after the repair (with a median of 6.5 versus 3.5) and did not see a decrease in earnings per start (with a median of $2452 versus $3061).

Conclusions

• Based on the results of the conducted study, the Acutrak screw system demonstrates effectiveness in repairing frontal C3 slab fractures in thoroughbred racehorses.
• The technique allows for adequate reduction and stability of C3 slab fractures, reducing the chances of fragment splitting and screw head impingement on carpal soft tissues, which can lead to further complications.