Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Standing CT scans find high strain areas in racehorse leg bones
By Malekipour F et al.Ā·2025Ā·Department of Biomedical Engineering, AustraliaĀ·View original on Europe PMC ā
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Original publication title: Standing CT-based finite element models efficiently identify regions of high mechanical strain in equine metacarpal subchondral bone.
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
Stress fractures are a common issue in racehorses, especially in the area around the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint, which takes on a lot of pressure during training and racing. This study looked at three trained racehorses, each showing different conditions in their subchondral bone (the bone just below the cartilage), as seen in CT scans. The researchers created two types of models to predict where the bone was under the most stress: one was a detailed 3D model, and the other was a simpler slice-based model. Both models found similar areas of high strain, particularly in certain parts of the joint, but the slice-based model was quicker and easier to use. Overall, the study suggests that the simpler model could be a helpful tool for quickly identifying areas in the horse's leg that might be at risk of injury.
Abstract
Stress fractures are common in racehorses, with the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint being the most frequently affected site as it is subjected to high-magnitude and high-rate cyclic loads during training and racing. These loads lead to repeated compressive stresses, resulting in subchondral bone (SCB) sclerosis, fatigue microcracks, and matrix damage that can progress to parasagittal fractures or palmar osteochondral disease (POD). The present study developed joint-specific 3D FE models and slice-based FE models using standing CT images for three trained racehorses, each presenting distinct SCB conditions common in racehorses as identified by their CT images: (1) biaxial sclerotic condylar SCB with no visible lesions: BS, (2) focal lytic SCB with associated sclerosis in the PSG: LGL, and (3) focal lytic SCB with associated sclerosis in the condyles: BCL. Both models predicted similar overall patterns of SCB stress and strain, identifying peak tensile and compressive strains in the PSGs and condyles, while minimal strains were observed over the sagittal ridge. The 3D models predicted a larger volume of highly strained bone compared to slice-based models, particularly in the horse with biaxial sclerosis. Both 3D and slice-based FE models demonstrated strong agreement in identifying the PSG and midcondyles as high-strain regions. The sensitivity analysis showed that variations in input parameters had minimal impact on the results, indicating the robustness of slice-based models. Despite being less detailed, slice-based models were much faster and more straightforward to develop and provided stress and strain patterns comparable to 3D models. These findings suggest that slice-based models offer a valuable tool for rapid assessment of biomechanical behaviour in equine fetlock joints, particularly for identifying regions at high-risk of failure in the clinical setting.
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Search related cases āOriginal publication on Europe PMC: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/41381693