Barbaro- Disaster at the Preakness


For those that watched the Preakness this afternoon it brought back memories of Ruffian. Heres what we know now according to Dr Larry Bramlage. Barbaro suffered two fractures in the right hind fetlock and is most likely being transported to New Bolton Center, the equine hospital at The University of Pennsylvanian. New Bolton is one of the only Hospitals that can recover horses from surgery in a pool and decrease the risk of wrecking the surgical repair during recovery.Unfortuneatly, this is a very significant injury since the fetlock is now very unstable and will most likely have to be plated . Additionally, if the blood supply or nerves are stretched or damaged then the picture gets worse. It was a great thing Prado did such a masterful job of bringing Barbaro to a quick stop without doing any further damage. We will find out more in a few days if the information is released, if all goes well.....sooner than later.
UPDATE

Barbaro underwent surgery and at this point it is looking pretty good. It the repair holds and there are no complications such as compromised blood supply
it could turn out well. Here is a look at the radiograph after the repair. You can see a stainless steel bone plate bridging the fetlock joint and numerous bone fragments. This repair is called an arthrodesis where the fetlock joint is fused.
There is still alot of weight on the leg and he could still bend the plate or have some of the bone screws loosen.

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