Methods and Variables Associated with the Risk of Septic Arthritis Following Intra-Articular Injections in Horses: A Survey of Veterinarians.

The research article focuses on the practices and variables associated with the risk of septic arthritis in horses following intra-articular injections, based on a survey conducted among equine veterinarians. The findings demonstrate that there is a low incidence of septic arthritis post-injection; factors such as the experience of the veterinarian and the practices related to preparing the injection site significantly affect the infection rates.

Survey Methodology

• The study implemented a cross-sectional survey design, aimed at equine veterinarians.
• An online survey link was distributed to equine practitioners in the year 2014.
• Responses gathered were used for tabulating descriptive data.
• Data pertaining to infection rates was extracted from medical records and were thoroughly analyzed.
• The research employed statistical tools like χ or Fisher’s exact tests and logistic regression to determine the variables associated with the risk of septic arthritis.

Results and Analysis

• From the 241 surveys participated in, current common methods for intra-articular injections were identified.
• Out of 241 surveys, 64 of them (equating to 26.6%) provided data about the number of joints injected and the number of infections, drawn from the review of medical records.
• More than two-thirds of the responding veterinarians were found to use eight different injection methods.
• Of 319,760 joints injected, a total of 67 joints become septic following injection, indicating an incidence rate of 2.10 septic joints per 10,000 intra-articular injections.
• Based on multivariate analysis, infection rates were considerably lower when veterinarians prepared their own injection sites (OR=0.10) and when they had less than 20 years of practice experience (OR=0.025).
• In contrast, infection rates were significantly higher when hair was removed at the injection site (OR=19.70).

Conclusions

• The incidence of septic arthritis following intra-articular injections is generally low, based on the survey data.
• A large variety of injection methods were reported by the responding veterinarians.
• The low incidence of infection observed could be attributed to the widespread usage of these common methods among a high number of practitioners, indicating the effectiveness of these methods in minimizing the risk.