Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How common are open leg and arm fractures in dogs and cats
By Millard, Ralph P & Weng, Hsin-Yi·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2014·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Proportion of and risk factors for open fractures of the appendicular skeleton in dogs and cats.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study looked at open fractures in dogs and cats caused by accidents, finding that only a small percentage of pets had these types of injuries. Out of nearly 85,000 dogs and over 26,000 cats examined, 77 dogs and 33 cats had open fractures, which are more severe than closed fractures. The research showed that certain types of fractures, like comminuted fractures (where the bone is shattered), were more likely to be open, and that vehicle-related accidents significantly increased the risk for dogs. Overall, while open fractures are uncommon, they can be serious and are linked to specific causes and fracture types.
People also search for: dog open fracture treatment · cat broken leg symptoms · dog injury from car accident
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the proportion of and risk factors for open fractures of the appendicular skeleton in dogs and cats that were a result of acute trauma. DESIGN: Cross-sectional and case-control study. ANIMALS: 84,629 dogs and 26,675 cats. PROCEDURES: Dogs and cats examined at Purdue University Veterinary Teaching Hospital from January 1993 through February 2013 were identified; the proportion of open fractures was estimated from the medical records. Additionally, all incident cases of open (77 dogs and 33 cats) and closed (469 dogs and 80 cats) fractures between January 1993 and February 2013 and a random sample of nonfracture patients (722 dogs and 330 cats) in 2010 were used to assess risk factors for open appendicular fractures. RESULTS: Proportion of open fractures for the 20-year period was 0.09% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.07% to 0.11%) in dogs and 0.12% (95% CI, 0.09% to 0.17%) in cats. Seventy-seven of 546 (14.1%) and 33 of 113 (29.2%) traumatic fractures were classified as open in dogs and cats, respectively. Comminuted fractures were more likely than other configurations to be open in dogs (OR, 5.9; 95% CI, 2.9 to 12.2) and cats (OR, 3.5; 95% CI, 1.0 to 12.0). Vehicle-related trauma was a significant risk factor for open fractures in dogs (OR, 13.8; 95% CI, 3.1 to 61.8). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The proportion of incident open fractures in dogs and cats was low. Age, body weight, affected bone or bone segment, fracture configuration, and method of trauma were associated with an open fracture.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25181270/