Decision-tree analysis of clinical data to aid diagnostic reasoning for equine laminitis: a cross-sectional study

C E Wylie,D J Shaw,J R Newton,K L P Verheyen

doi:10.1136/vr.103588

Abstract

The objective of this cross-sectional study was to compare the prevalence of selected clinical signs in laminitis cases and non-laminitic but lame controls to evaluate their capability to discriminate laminitis...

Highlights

Equine laminitis is a painful disease of the foot that affects equidae worldwide (Mellor and others 2001; Wylie and others 2011)
The terminology used to describe chronic laminitis is extremely variable (Parks and Mair 2009), but is often taken to describe progression from acute laminitis to failure of the SADP resulting in dislocation of the DP following detachment of the hoof wall (Grosenbaugh and others 1999)
73 (30.7%: confidence intervals (CI) 24.8, 36.5) Group A animals were diagnosed on the basis of clinical signs without further diagnostic procedures and 155 (65.1%: CI 59.1, 71.2) animals were diagnosed using multiple diagnostic modalities (cases 62.2%: CI 46.5, 77.8, controls 65.7%: CI 59.1, ia included clinical examination (94.6%: CI 87.3, 100), radiography (64.9%: CI 49.5, 80.2), regional anaesthesia (13.5%: CI 2.5, 24.5), surgical/post-mortem findings

Summary

Introduction

Equine laminitis is a painful disease of the foot that affects equidae worldwide (Mellor and others 2001; Wylie and others 2011). Co unrelenting pain often necessitates euthanasia of the affected animal on welfare grounds (Hunt 1993; Menzies-Gow and others 2010b). There are no universally accepted gold-standard techniques for the detection and quantification of the four stages of laminitis Acute laminitis either progresses to the subacute form or to the chronic form of the disease. The subacute stage can either persist, develop to chronic laminitis, or lead to complete recovery. Development of chronic laminitis usually results in a cycle of recurrent episodes (Hood 1999). The terminology used to describe chronic laminitis is extremely variable (Parks and Mair 2009), but is often taken to describe progression from acute laminitis to failure of the SADP resulting in dislocation of the DP following detachment of the hoof wall (Grosenbaugh and others 1999)

Objectives

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Conclusion