A Method for Quantifying Back Flexion/Extension from Three Inertial Measurement Units Mounted on a Horse's Withers, Thoracolumbar Region, and Pelvis.

Back mobility is a criterion of well-being in a horse. Veterinarians visually assess the mobility of a horse's back during a locomotor examination. Quantifying it with on-board technology could be a major breakthrough to help them.

Development of a Methodology for Low-Cost 3D Underwater Motion Capture: Application to the Biomechanics of Horse Swimming.

Hydrotherapy has been utilized in horse rehabilitation programs for over four decades. However, a comprehensive description of the swimming cycle of horses is still lacking. One of the challenges in studying this motion is 3D underwater motion capture, which holds potential not only for understanding equine locomotion but also for enhancing human swimming performance.

Asymmetry Thresholds Reflecting the Visual Assessment of Forelimb Lameness on Circles on a Hard Surface.

The assessment of lameness in horses can be aided by objective gait analysis tools. Despite their key role of evaluating a horse at trot on a circle, asymmetry thresholds have not been determined for differentiating between sound and lame gait during this exercise. These thresholds are essential to distinguish physiological asymmetry linked to the circle from pathological asymmetry linked to lameness.

Acupuncture has potential in managing axial stiffness in steeplechase racehorses: a blinded prospective randomized preliminary study.

Objective: Evaluate the short-term effects of acupuncture on the dynamic manifestations of axial stiffness in steeplechase racehorses.

Animals: 12 steeplechase racehorses presenting signs of axial stiffness during training.

Methods: Horses were randomly assigned to either an acupuncture treatment by an experienced certified acupuncturist (n = 6) or no treatment as negative controls (6).

Stance Phase Detection by Inertial Measurement Unit Placed on the Metacarpus of Horses Trotting on Hard and Soft Straight Lines and Circles.

The development of on-board technologies has enabled the development of quantification systems to monitor equine locomotion parameters. Their relevance among others relies on their ability to determine specific locomotor events such as foot-on and heel-off events. The objective of this study was to compare the accuracy of different methods for an automatic gait events detection from inertial measurement units (IMUs).