Use of autologous products for the treatment of joint and soft tissue disease in horses: A systematic review.

Abstract

Soft tissue injuries and joint disease are the predominate causes of lameness in the equine athlete and these pathologies carry a guarded prognosis for a return to previous performance. Recently the use of autologous products has become more widespread as a treatment in equine sports medicine. However, the efficacy of these products is yet to be fully established. To evaluate the current published evidence base regarding the efficacy of autologous products in soft tissue injuries and joint disease. A systematic review of English articles using MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science databases from 1980 to 2017. The search strategy identified 1594 papers for review. Fifty-eight papers were included in this review, 28 of which were randomised controlled trials. Significant benefit was reported under several parameters, most notably in the use of autologous chondrocytes in artificially induced cartilage defects on histology. One paper documented a significant clinical response under lameness examination. The current literature shows that the treatment of soft tissue injury and cartilage disease with autologous products is safe and that the use of some products can give significant benefit on some outcome measures. True clinical significance is yet to be demonstrated with any product.