Progress made in treating fractures in horses.

Japanese researchers from Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine in Hokkaido have discovered that gelatin microspheres containing bFGF, an autocrine growth factor, speed up the healing process in damaged bones.
The research published in December’s issue of the ‘American Journal of Veterinary Research“ details the treatment of damage to the third metacarpal (MC3s) in 6 thoroughbreds, induced experimentally.
To each horse that was anesthetized, a hole 4.5mm in diameter was made in the medial condyle of both metacarpals. Following that, a one milliliter solution of hydrogel microspheres containing bFGF in the right capsule of the metacarporalphalangeal joint of each horse was inserted and a milliliter of saline in the left joint, as a study control.
X-rays were carried out the day after and then after 4, 8, 12 and 16 weeks after surgery to assess the development and the filling of the hole in the bone.
16 weeks after the surgery, a multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT) was used to determine the exact filling of the hole. The X-rays showed healing in 4 – 12 weeks after surgery in the joints treated with the growth factor and after 8 – 16 weeks in the control joints.
The MDCT also showed greater healing in the joints treated with bFGF compared to those of controls and this type of treatment could be very useful for treating fractures in horses.