Stephansmuehle Pferdepraxis, Hilpoltstein, Germany.
School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, California, USA.
Equine Vet J. 2021 Sep;53(5):972-978. doi: 10.1111/evj.13383. Epub 2021 Jan 11.
Cervical osteoarthritis (OA) has been documented as a potential source of pain and poor performance in sport horses.
To assess the prevalence of cervical OA in a population of Warmblood jumpers and its correlation with age, level of performance, neck pain and mobility.
Descriptive observational study.
Warmblood jumpers free of lameness or neurological disorders were selected. Cervical pain and range of motion of the neck were subjectively assessed. Left to right lateral views were taken at C3-C4, C4-C5, C5-C6 and C6-C7. The presence of OA at the cervical articular process joints (APJs) was evaluated and graded as absent, mild or moderate to severe by three board-certified radiologists. The agreement between radiologists and the potential associations between OA grades with age and other variables were statistically assessed (P < .05).
One hundred and four horses were included [median age = 10 years (range 6-18 years)]. Agreement between radiologists varied from fair to substantial (Kappa-weighted 0.37-0.61). The C6-C7 APJ was most commonly affected by OA with only 32.7% of APJ considered free of radiographic abnormalities at this location versus 60.5% at C5-C6, 81.7% at C4-C5 and 84.6% at C3-C4. Horses competing in higher level classes (peak of performance) had significantly higher OA grades at C6-C7 (P = .013). There was no association between age, age when started jumping, neck pain and neck range of motion with the presence of OA on radiographs.
Open enrolment and lack of orthogonal views.
This study showed that, although there is a range of interpretation of radiographic findings of the APJ, OA of the caudal cervical region is not rare in performing sound Warmblood jumpers. This suggests that OA in the caudal cervical region may be of low clinical significance.
颈椎骨关节炎（OA）已被证实是运动马疼痛和表现不佳的潜在原因。
评估温血跳跃马人群中颈椎 OA 的患病率及其与年龄、运动水平、颈部疼痛和活动度的相关性。
描述性观察性研究。
选择无跛行或神经障碍的温血跳跃马。主观评估颈部疼痛和颈部活动度。在 C3-C4、C4-C5、C5-C6 和 C6-C7 处拍摄左侧到右侧的侧位片。由三位经过董事会认证的放射科医生评估颈椎关节突关节（APJ）的 OA 存在情况，并对其进行分级为无、轻度或中重度。统计评估放射科医生之间的一致性以及 OA 分级与年龄和其他变量之间的潜在关联（P<.05）。
共纳入 104 匹马[中位数年龄为 10 岁（范围 6-18 岁）]。放射科医生之间的一致性从一般到实质性不等（加权 Kappa 值为 0.37-0.61）。C6-C7 APJ 最常受到 OA 的影响，仅 32.7%的 APJ 在该部位无放射学异常，而 C5-C6 为 60.5%、C4-C5 为 81.7%、C3-C4 为 84.6%。在更高水平级别（运动表现高峰期）比赛的马在 C6-C7 处的 OA 分级显著更高（P=.013）。年龄、开始跳跃的年龄、颈部疼痛与颈部活动度与 X 线片上 OA 的存在之间没有关联。
开放注册和缺乏正交视图。
本研究表明，尽管 APJ 的放射学发现存在一定的解释范围，但在表现良好的温血跳跃马中，尾部颈椎区域的 OA 并不罕见。这表明尾部颈椎区域的 OA 可能具有较低的临床意义。
