Skadeförekomst hos häst relaterat till olika typ och mängd av utevistelse

This study was performed to examine whether horses that are kept alone in small paddocks are less likely to suffer injuries, compared to horses kept in bigger enclosures with the company of other horses, or not. In not yet published research material from 2005, risk factors associated with “accident...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: Odlander, Jeanette
Formato: L3
Lenguaje:sueco
Inglés
Publicado: SLU/Dept. of Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry (until 231231) 2010
Materias:
Acceso en línea:http://epsilon.slu.se
Descripción
Sumario:This study was performed to examine whether horses that are kept alone in small paddocks are less likely to suffer injuries, compared to horses kept in bigger enclosures with the company of other horses, or not. In not yet published research material from 2005, risk factors associated with “accidental injuries” versus “wear and tear injuries” (represented by trauma injury and fetlock inflammation respectively), were compared. That material, based on the results of 507 returned questionnaires from owners of horses in a Swedish insurance company, included questions about paddock/pasture confinement. The results from those questions were then analyzed in this study in a so called case-control study, in which the groups with trauma and fetlock inflammation were compared to a healthy control group. The results show that the risk of fetlock inflammation is greater in a small confinement, OR for inflammation in a small paddock is 2,2 (95% KI 1,2-3,9) compared to a bigger paddock. “Small paddock without company” is also a risk factor for fetlock inflammation compared to “big paddock with company”, OR 2,4 (955 KI 1,1-5,0) and so is “big paddock without company” and “small paddock with company”, with OR 2,9 (95% KI 1,2-7,3) and OR 2,4 (95% KI 1,1-5,3) respectively. The results also show that daily outdoor confinement that exceed 10 hours can be considered a protective factor for both fetlock inflammation, OR 0,3 (95% KI 0,1-0,7) and traumatic injury, OR 0,4 (95% KI 0,2-0,8) compared to outdoor confinement 6-10 hours per day. The data indicates that the risk for fetlock inflammation may be less when the ground surface is hilly and/or contains wood, but this could not be confirmed due to the small number of horses that were kept on such grounds, 120 compared to 368 horses that had flat surface in their paddocks/pastures (19 questionnaires were missing information about this). The conclusion is that an association between how the horse is kept and the risk for trauma and fetlock inflammation have been observed in this study. However, confounding factors may affect the results, but if the findings turn out to be durable in larger prospective studies and the etiologic fractions are considered to be of importance, the guidance concerning horse keeping for improved health should be clarified.