Large Animal Clinical Services

Patient Success Stories - Oblio’s Broken Leg

October 20, 2004 was a bad day for Oblio, a four-month-old Warmblood cross. He was out in pasture with his dam and fell while playing. He struggled to get up and was instantly non-weight bearing lame on his left front leg. Dr. Mc Evoy was immediately called out to the farm and he diagnosed a fracture of Oblio’s left radius. He placed a bandage and splint to support the fractured limb while the foal was transported to the UC Davis Large Animal Teaching Hospital.

At UC Davis, radiographs were taken to diagnose the severity of the fracture and to make a plan for repair. Oblio had sustained a severe fracture to his radius: the bone was completely broken and the fracture ends were displaced. However the optimal splinting technique protected the surrounding soft tissues, which greatly improved the chances for successful repair.

xray_1

Dr. Galuppo, a board certified orthopedic surgeon, and his surgery team made a plan to repair the fracture with two plates and multiple bone screws. At surgery, the fracture was exposed and the bone ends were realigned. Two locking compression plates were used to maintain fracture alignment and to support the bone.

xray2

During recovery from anesthesia, Oblio was supported in a sling to minimize the chances of having the fixation fail by shattering of the bone and/or bending the bone plates and screws.

Oblio recovered well from anesthesia and returned to his stall carefully bearing weight on his repaired leg. After two weeks in the hospital, Oblio and his dam returned home on strict stall rest until the fracture had healed. After 6 months, the fracture showed sufficient healing, which allowed him to have access to a small paddock. After 9 months he was turned out in a large paddock to help further strengthen the bone.

Currently, Oblio’s fracture has healed completely and the implants are intact. His owner reports: “Oblio is doing some light lunge work. We are starting him under saddle in a couple of months. I plan to train him for dressage as he has some nice movement and carries himself very well. Although his broken leg is somewhat bigger than the other, he is quite sound on it.”

Oblio


[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]	Patient Success Stories - Oblio’s Broken Leg October 20, 2004 was a bad day for Oblio, a four-month-old Warmblood cross. He was out in pasture with his dam and fell while playing. He struggled to get up and was instantly non-weight bearing lame on his left front leg. Dr. Mc Evoy was immediately called out to the farm and he diagnosed a fracture of Oblio’s left radius. He placed a bandage and splint to support the fractured limb while the foal was transported to the UC Davis Large Animal Teaching Hospital. At UC Davis, radiographs were taken to diagnose the severity of the fracture and to make a plan for repair. Oblio had sustained a severe fracture to his radius: the bone was completely broken and the fracture ends were displaced. However the optimal splinting technique protected the surrounding soft tissues, which greatly improved the chances for successful repair. Dr. Galuppo, a board certified orthopedic surgeon, and his surgery team made a plan to repair the fracture with two plates and multiple bone screws. At surgery, the fracture was exposed and the bone ends were realigned. Two locking compression plates were used to maintain fracture alignment and to support the bone. During recovery from anesthesia, Oblio was supported in a sling to minimize the chances of having the fixation fail by shattering of the bone and/or bending the bone plates and screws. Oblio recovered well from anesthesia and returned to his stall carefully bearing weight on his repaired leg. After two weeks in the hospital, Oblio and his dam returned home on strict stall rest until the fracture had healed. After 6 months, the fracture showed sufficient healing, which allowed him to have access to a small paddock. After 9 months he was turned out in a large paddock to help further strengthen the bone. Currently, Oblio’s fracture has healed completely and the implants are intact. His owner reports: “Oblio is doing some light lunge work. We are starting him under saddle in a couple of months. I plan to train him for dressage as he has some nice movement and carries himself very well. Although his broken leg is somewhat bigger than the other, he is quite sound on it.”