Is a single force plate adequate for stabilographic analysis in horses?

The research investigates if a single force plate can yield representative data of stabilographic analysis for horses. By focusing on either the forelimbs or hindlimbs, the study concludes that a pair of limbs, preferably the forelimbs, can measure total body postural balance effectively.

Research Method

• The study collected stabilographic data from 17 sound horses. The horses were made to stand with their forelimbs and the hindlimbs on separate force plates.
• To ensure a wider scope, the study incorporated horses of varying sizes and recorded under different durations ranging from 15 to 60 seconds.
• The recording sessions were carried out under both sighted and blindfolded conditions to further expand the data variation.

Results

• The results uncovered from correlation matrices indicated a high significant correlation between total body stabilographic variables and both forelimb and hindlimb data.
• However, higher correlation coefficients were observed for the forelimb data. This signifies that the forelimb data considered the total body stabilographic measure more efficiently.
• In a 16-variables model developed through forward stepwise regression, forelimb data were selected for 15 variables except the mean absolute mediolateral velocity.

Conclusions

• By assessing the study’s findings, it was concluded that data from a pair of limbs, particularly forelimbs, can effectively represent the total body postural balance in horses while they stand soundly. This means that the use of a single force plate analyzing a pair of limbs can yield representative stabilographic analysis.
• Moreover, the stabilographic data derived from either the forelimbs or hindlimbs could be utilized to identify and quantify deficiencies in postural balance in ataxic horses.