Division of Veterinary Clinical Science, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Veterinary Centre, Easter Bush, Roslin, Midlothian EH25 9RG, UK.
Equine Vet J. 2009 Nov;41(8):812-6. doi: 10.2746/042516409x434134.
There is contradictory published evidence on the potential efficacy of 'tongue ties' (TTs) for treatment of intermittent dorsal displacement of the soft palate (DDSP) in racehorses.
To evaluate the effect of TTs on racing performance in Thoroughbred racehorses in the U.K. using a retrospective cohort study.
Data on individual horses' lifetime racing performance and TT use were retrieved from the Racing Post Online Database. Exposed cases were horses that ran with a TT in randomly chosen race meetings on one of 60 randomly chosen dates from 2001-2003. Unexposed (control) horses were matched to each exposed horse. Various measures of racing performance were analysed both within and between exposed and unexposed groups. Subsets of exposed horses that ran for 3 or 5 consecutive starts wearing TTs and their matched controls were analysed separately to examine the effect of repeated TT use.
The inclusion criteria were fulfilled by 108 horses. The odds ratio for 'improvement' in race earnings between exposed and unexposed horses was 1.85 for horses that ran at least once with a TT, and 3.60 and 4.24, respectively, for horses that ran in 3 or 5 consecutive races wearing a TT. After instigation of TT use, horses that ran in 3 or 5 consecutive races wearing a TT had a significant increase in earnings when they ran wearing a TT compared to their pre-TT races.
The use of a TT appears to have a beneficial effect on racing performance in a selected population of Thoroughbred racehorses.
有一些相互矛盾的已发表证据表明，舌系带（TTs）对治疗赛马间歇性软腭后移位（DDSP）可能有效。
使用回顾性队列研究评估 TT 对英国纯血赛马比赛表现的影响。
从 Racing Post Online Database 中检索了关于个体马一生比赛表现和 TT 使用的数据。暴露组病例为在 2001-2003 年的 60 个随机日期中的一个随机选定的比赛日，使用 TT 参赛的马。未暴露（对照组）马与每一匹暴露马相匹配。在暴露和未暴露组内以及组间分析了各种比赛表现指标。分别分析了连续佩戴 TT 参赛 3 或 5 次的暴露组马及其匹配的对照组马，以检查重复使用 TT 的效果。
符合纳入标准的马有 108 匹。至少使用过一次 TT 的马，其比赛收入“改善”的优势比为 1.85；使用 TT 连续参赛 3 或 5 次的马，其优势比分别为 3.60 和 4.24。在使用 TT 后，连续佩戴 TT 参赛 3 或 5 次的马，在佩戴 TT 参赛时的收入与佩戴 TT 前的比赛相比显著增加。
在选定的英国纯血赛马群体中，使用 TT 似乎对比赛表现有有益的影响。
