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PloS one2020; 15(2); e0222822; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0222822

Range of motion and between-measurement variation of spinal kinematics in sound horses at trot on the straight line and on the lunge.

Abstract: Clinical assessment of spinal motion in horses is part of many routine clinical exams but remains highly subjective. A prerequisite for the quantification of spinal motion is the assessment of the expected normal range of motion and variability of back kinematics. The aim of this study was to objectively quantify spinal kinematics and between -measurement, -surface and -day variation in owner-sound horses. In an observational study, twelve owner-sound horses were trotted 12 times on four different paths (hard/soft straight line, soft lunge left and right). Measurements were divided over three days, with five repetitions on day one and two, and two repetitions on day three (recheck) which occurred 28-55 days later. Optical motion capture was used to collect kinematic data. Elements of the outcome were: 1) Ranges of Motion (ROM) with confidence intervals per path and surface, 2) a variability model to calculate between-measurement variation and test the effect of time, surface and path, 3) intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) to determine repeatability. ROM was lowest on the hard straight line. Cervical lateral bending was doubled on the left compared to the right lunge. Mean variation for the flexion-extension and lateral bending of the whole back were 0.8 and 1 degrees. Pelvic motion showed a variation of 1.0 (pitch), 0.7 (yaw) and 1.3 (roll) degrees. For these five parameters, a tendency for more variation on the hard surface and reduced variation with increased repetitions was observed. More variation was seen on the recheck (p<0.001). ICC values for pelvic rotations were between 0.76 and 0.93, for the whole back flexion-extension and lateral bending between 0.51 and 0.91. Between-horse variation was substantially higher than within-horse variation. In conclusion, ROM and variation in spinal biomechanics are horse-specific and small, necessitating individual analysis and making subjective and objective clinical assessment of spinal kinematics challenging.
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Publication Date: 2020-02-25 PubMed ID: 32097432PubMed Central: PMC7041811DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0222822Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article
  • Observational Study

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research investigates spinal movement in horses, revealing that it is highly individualized and presents challenges for both subjective and objective clinical assessments. The research aims to quantify spinal kinematics in sound horses, especially focusing on the variances in measurements, surfaces, and timings.

About the study

  • The study was observational, involving twelve horses that were made to trot 12 times on four different paths (a hard/soft straight line, and a soft lunge left and right).
  • The measurements were spread over three days, with five repetitions on the first two days, and two repetitions on day three which occurred 28-55 days later.
  • The researchers used an optical motion capture system to collect kinematic data.

Results and findings

  • The study found that the Range of Motion (ROM) was lowest on the hard straight line.
  • Cervical lateral bending doubled when lunging left compared to right.
  • Mean variation for the flexion-extension and lateral bending of the whole back were quite small, indicating consistency in these movements.
  • Pelvic motion showed a slight variation in pitch, yaw and roll degrees.
  • The study also showed a tendency for more variation on the hard surface and reduced variation with increased repetitions.
  • The amount of variation increased significantly on the recheck day.

Repeatability and variation

  • Repeatability, measured by the Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC), found the values for pelvic rotations between 0.76 and 0.93, and for the whole back flexion-extension and lateral bending between 0.51 and 0.91.
  • Between-horse variability was significantly higher than within-horse variability, suggesting that spinal kinematics is highly individual to each horse.

Conclusion

  • The conclusion of the study holds that the ROM and the variation in spinal mechanics are very specific to individual horses and are quite small, making clinical assessment challenging.

Cite This Article

APA
Hardeman AM, Byström A, Roepstorff L, Swagemakers JH, van Weeren PR, Serra Bragança FM. (2020). Range of motion and between-measurement variation of spinal kinematics in sound horses at trot on the straight line and on the lunge. PLoS One, 15(2), e0222822. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0222822

Publication

PloS one
ISSN: 1932-6203
NlmUniqueID: 101285081
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 15
Issue: 2
Pages: e0222822
PII: e0222822

Researcher Affiliations

Hardeman, A M
  • Tierklinik Luesche GmbH, Luesche, Germany.
  • Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
  • Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden.
Byström, A
  • Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden.
Roepstorff, L
  • Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden.
Swagemakers, J H
  • Tierklinik Luesche GmbH, Luesche, Germany.
van Weeren, P R
  • Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Serra Bragança, F M
  • Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.

MeSH Terms

  • Animals
  • Back / physiology
  • Biological Variation, Individual
  • Biomechanical Phenomena
  • Gait
  • Horses
  • Locomotion
  • Range of Motion, Articular / physiology
  • Reproducibility of Results

Conflict of Interest Statement

The involvement of ‘Tierklinik Lüsche GmbH’ does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

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Citations

This article has been cited 16 times.
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