Influence of plate type and placement on the immobilization of bilateral equine mandibular osteotomies: Ex vivo study.

This research investigates the impact of different plate types and their positioning on the immobilization of horse mandible fractures. The study finds that ventrolateral locking compression plates offer better resistance to bending forces, suggesting them as a preferred method for treating transverse interdental mandibular fractures in horses.

Objective of the Research

The purpose of this study is to understand how different types of plate fixation – locking or dynamic compression – and their positioning, either ventral or ventrolateral, affect the stability of transverse mandibular fractures (breaks across the width of the lower jaw bone) in horses.

Methods Used in the Study

• Mandibles were collected from adult horse cadavers, with the sample size being 18.
• Fractures were artificially created in the mandibles, 1 cm below the mental foramen (an opening on the front side of the mandible).
• These fractures were then treated using one of three methods: Ventrolateral dynamic compression plate, ventral dynamic compression plate, or ventrolateral locking compression plate.
• After the fixation, the mandibles were placed on a specialized testing equipment and subjected to force, to observe the resistance to bending.
• Measurements like stiffness and changes in osteotomy distance under 200 N force were compared among all three constructs.

Findings of the Study

• The reasserach discovered that mandibles secured with ventrolateral locking compression plate (VL-LCP) were significantly stiffer than those treated with ventral and ventrolateral. Specifically, VL-LCP constructs were 5.25 and 2.42 times stiffer than V and VL constructs respectively.
• Further, the distance of the fracture line increased less under force for mandibles immobilized with VL fixtures, compared to those with V fixtures. The research showed that this distance was reduced 6.04 times when osteotomies were stabilized with VL as against V.
• No notable differences were documented between the VL and VL-LCP constructs.

Conclusions of the Research

• The use of Ventrolateral Locking Compression Plating (VL-LCP) for treating transverse mandibular fractures in horses provides better resistance to bending as compared to ventral and ventrolateral constructs.
• Based on the results of this study, the researchers recommend opting for VL-LCP as a preferred method for treating transverse interdental mandibular fractures in horses, rather than dynamic compression plating.