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Home / Equine Research Bank / BMC Vet Res / Prevalence of osteochondral lesions in the fetlock and hock ...
BMC veterinary research2018; 14(1); 390; doi: 10.1186/s12917-018-1726-3

Prevalence of osteochondral lesions in the fetlock and hock joints of Standardbred horses that survived bacterial infection before 6 months of age.

Abstract: Young Standardbred horses frequently develop fragments in joints. Some fragments represent osteochondrosis; others are considered developmental, but it is uncertain whether they result from preceding osteochondrosis. Osteochondrosis occurs as a consequence of failure of the cartilage canal blood supply and ischaemic chondronecrosis. In heritably predisposed foals, failure was associated with incorporation of vessels into bone. However, bacterial vascular failure was also recently documented in foals suffering spontaneous infections, proving that bacteria can cause osteochondral lesions in foals up to 150 days old. The aim was to determine prevalence of fetlock and hock lesions at screening age in Standardbred horses that survived infections before 6 months of age, and compare this to prevalence reported in the literature. Methods: The material consisted of 28 Standardbred horses; 17 males and 11 females that presented and were diagnosed clinically with bacterial infections from 1 to 150 days of age (average: 41.3 days). A screening set of 8 radiographic projections was available from all 28 horses at 7-85 months of age (average: 23.6 months). Lesion prevalence was compared to three previously reported Standardbred cohorts. Results: Osteochondral lesions were detected in one or more joints of 19/28 horses (67.9%); in the fetlock joint of 14/28 horses (50%) and the hock joint of 11/28 horses (39.3%). These prevalences were ≥ 2 x higher than the corresponding prevalences in the comparison cohorts, and statistically significantly so in 5:6 comparisons (p-values from < 0.00001 to 0.01). In the sepsis cohort, there were an average of 2.3 affected joints and 2.5 lesions per affected horse, whereas there in the one comparable literature cohort were an average of 1.5 affected joints and 1.7 lesions per affected horse. Conclusions: Standardbred horses that survived bacterial infections before 6 months of age had more osteochondral lesions than literature comparison cohorts at screening age. The implication was that some of the lesions in this group were caused by bacteria. It may become necessary to develop methods for differentiating between acquired, septic and aseptic, heritably predisposed lesions.
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Publication Date: 2018-12-10 PubMed ID: 30526583PubMed Central: PMC6288956DOI: 10.1186/s12917-018-1726-3Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

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This research investigates the prevalence of osteochondral lesions in the joints of young Standardbred horses that have survived bacterial infection from a very young age. The study finds that horses that lived through bacteria infections before they reach 6 months of age are more likely to develop osteochondral lesions.

Background

  • Osteochondrosis, a disorder that affects the growth of cartilage and bone, is often observed in young Standardbred horses and is linked to high incidences of joint fragments. Some of these fragments are developmental, while others indicate osteochondrosis.
  • A vascular supply failure to the cartilage, known as ischaemic chondronecrosis, is considered a consequence of osteochondrosis. In foals with a hereditary predisposition, this failure is linked to the incorporation of vessels into bones.
  • Bacterial vascular failure has also been documented in foals suffering spontaneous infections. This indicates that bacteria can cause osteochondral lesions and even injuries to the joints in foals up to 150 days old.

Objective and Methodology

  • The aim of this research was to determine the prevalence of fetlock and hock joint lesions at screening age in Standardbred horses that survived an infection before they reached 6 months of age and compare this to other reports in the literature.
  • The study involved 28 Standardbred horses diagnosed with bacterial infections at an average age of 41.3 days.
  • Screening sets of eight radiographic projections were used to observe the horses between the ages of seven and 85 months (average: 23.6 months).
  • The prevalence of lesions in the study subjects was compared to three other reported Standardbred cohorts.

Findings

  • Osteochondral lesions were found in one or more joints in 19 out of 28 horses studied.
  • Specifically, in the fetlock joint, lesions were present in 50% of the horses and in the hock joint, lesions were detected in 39.3% of the horses.
  • The prevalence of lesions observed was at least twice as high as those reported in other cohorts and was statistically significant in 5 out of 6 comparisons made.
  • In the cohort affected by sepsis, on average, there were 2.3 affected joints and 2.5 lesions per affected horse. A comparable literature cohort saw averages of 1.5 affected joints and 1.7 lesions per affected horse.

Conclusion

  • Standardbred horses that survived bacterial infections before they reached 6 months of age had a higher prevalence of osteochondral lesions compared to literature comparison cohorts at screening age.
  • This implies that bacterial infection can cause some of these lesions. There might be a need to develop methods to differentiate between lesions triggered by bacteria (septic) and those caused by inherited predisposition (aseptic).

Cite This Article

APA
Hendrickson EHS, Lykkjen S, Dolvik NI, Olstad K. (2018). Prevalence of osteochondral lesions in the fetlock and hock joints of Standardbred horses that survived bacterial infection before 6 months of age. BMC Vet Res, 14(1), 390. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-018-1726-3

Publication

BMC veterinary research
ISSN: 1746-6148
NlmUniqueID: 101249759
Country: England
Language: English
Volume: 14
Issue: 1
Pages: 390
PII: 390

Researcher Affiliations

Hendrickson, Eli H S
  • Equine Section, Department of Companion Animal Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ullevålsveien 72, 0454, Oslo, Norway.
Lykkjen, Sigrid
  • Equine Section, Department of Companion Animal Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ullevålsveien 72, 0454, Oslo, Norway.
Dolvik, Nils I
  • Equine Section, Department of Companion Animal Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ullevålsveien 72, 0454, Oslo, Norway.
Olstad, Kristin
  • Equine Section, Department of Companion Animal Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ullevålsveien 72, 0454, Oslo, Norway. kristin.olstad@nmbu.no.

MeSH Terms

  • Age Factors
  • Animals
  • Bacterial Infections / complications
  • Bacterial Infections / microbiology
  • Bacterial Infections / pathology
  • Bacterial Infections / veterinary
  • Carpus, Animal / pathology
  • Female
  • Horse Diseases / microbiology
  • Horse Diseases / pathology
  • Horses
  • Male
  • Osteochondrosis / epidemiology
  • Osteochondrosis / etiology
  • Osteochondrosis / pathology
  • Osteochondrosis / veterinary
  • Prevalence
  • Tarsus, Animal / pathology

Grant Funding

  • 218962 / Norges Forskningsru00e5d (NO)
  • H1147117 / Swedish-Norwegian Foundation for Equine Research (Norsk Hestesenter, Jordbruksavtalen)

Conflict of Interest Statement

ETHICS APPROVAL: The study was carried out in accordance with the Norwegian Law on Animal Welfare (LOV-2009-06-19-97) and the Regulations for Use of Animals in Research (FOR-2015-06-18-761). Informed consent was obtained from the client or owner for all involved animals. Consent to participate from human subjects: not applicable. CONSENT FOR PUBLICATION: Not applicable. COMPETING INTERESTS: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. PUBLISHER’S NOTE: Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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Citations

This article has been cited 2 times.
  1. Olstad K, Gangsei LE, Kongsro J. A method for labelling lesions for machine learning and some new observations on osteochondrosis in computed tomographic scans of four pig joints.. BMC Vet Res 2022 Aug 31;18(1):328.
    doi: 10.1186/s12917-022-03426-xpubmed: 36045350google scholar: lookup
  2. Olstad K, Wormstrand B, Kongsro J, Grindflek E. Computed tomographic development of physeal osteochondrosis in pigs.. BMC Vet Res 2019 Dec 17;15(1):454.
    doi: 10.1186/s12917-019-2163-7pubmed: 31847840google scholar: lookup
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