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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

Use of cancellous bone graft in treatment of navicular bone osteomyelitis in a foal.

Journal:
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
Year:
1985
Authors:
Markel, M D et al.
Species:
horse

Plain-English summary

A 3-month-old Quarter Horse filly hurt her right hind foot by stepping on a fence staple, which led to an infection in the navicular bone (a small bone in the foot). The veterinarian cleaned out the infected area and filled it with special bone material taken from another part of the filly's body. Six weeks after the surgery, the area was healing well, and by the six-month check-up, the filly's foot had fully healed, allowing her to walk normally again. This case suggests that using this type of bone graft can be a helpful treatment for this kind of bone infection in horses.

Abstract

A 3-month-old Quarter Horse filly stepped on a fence staple and developed navicular bone osteomyelitis of the right hindfoot. A 1.5-cm spherical portion of medullary cavity containing purulent material was debrided and flushed with 0.9% NaCl solution. Cancellous bone was collected from a caudal sternebra and placed into the defect. The solar defect had filled with granulation tissue and was epithelialized 6 weeks after surgery. At 6-month follow-up evaluation, the navicular bone defect had healed and the foal was sound on the limb. Cancellous bone grafting may have merit for the treatment of navicular bone osteomyelitis in the horse.

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Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3897160/