The Equine Hindlimb Proximal Suspensory Ligament: an Assessment of Health and Function by Means of Its Damping Harmonic Oscillator Properties, Measured Using an Acoustic Myography System: a New Modality Study
An article from the Journal of Equine Veterinary Science.
Highlights
- Injury to the proximal suspensory ligament (PSL) is common in most types of athletic horses and can account for up to 46% of all limb injuries.
- Acoustic myography provides a quantitative assessment of tissue function.
- Acoustic myography sensors can be used to record the shock waves that are transmitted through the suspensory tissue after foot impact, and as such monitor the ability of the suspensory system to act as a damping harmonic oscillator.
- There was a significant difference in CURO score between horses with evidence of PSL injury and all other groups. Correlations showed that PSLs were healthy with a score >5 (60% of SOUND horses; 87% of PSL-TREATED), had low-level injury at scores 2.5–4.5, and had severe injuries at scores <2.
- Acoustic myography is a promising diagnostic tool to detect injuries of the proximal suspensory ligament in horses.