Introduction:
Osteochondrosis (OC) is the most important orthopaedic developmental disorder in horses and may manifest in several different forms. No detailed study on the prevalence and/or interrelation of these forms is available, even though these data are a prerequisite for conclusive genetic studies. The aim is to assess the prevalence and heritabilities of the various manifestations of OC as detected radiographically and to evaluate possible relationships between their occurrence within the same joint and between different joints.
Results:
Scoring on a detailed scale is necessary to achieve good insight into the prevalence of OC. For all joints combined, the percentage of animals showing normal joint contours in all sites was 30.5%. Observations on the right and left joints can be combined in further analyses, whereas flattened bone contours and fragments should be evaluated as statistically different disorders. |
