Bandager/gamacher - støtter de? {{forumTopicSubject}}

Fandt denne super spændende artikel, med diverse studier i, der kommer rundt om, om hvorvidt bandager og gamacher støtter.


http://www.eurodressage.com/.../boots-or-bandages-what-best

" Bandages, taping or non-rigid boots are not efficient in reducing fetlock extension, although one study has proven significant reduction of fetlock extension of around 1° using support boots, corresponding to a theoretical reduction of around 200-300 Newtons at the walk and trot, respectively (Kicker et al., 2004).
“Whether or not this is a significant reduction in the prevention of injury is unknown. Limb forces are around 4000-6000 Newtons at walk and trot, respectively, meaning that the reported reduction is about 5% of the maximal vertical force,” Maarten added. "

" So while there are good reasons to use leg protection on our horses there are also downsides. Despite the many claims of manufacturers there is little evidence that sports medicine or performance boots reduce sprain and strain injuries.
“The biomechanics of the horse is such that adding weight to the lower limbs has a profound effect on the efficiency of the horse’s legs. The horse must perform extra work to pull the limb off the ground into the swing phase of the stride and again to control the weighted leg while it is in flight. The pastern area also seems to be particularly sensitive to tactile stimulation so that the mere presence of a bandage or boot creates an increased flexion while in swing phase. This sounds like the horse’s movement might feel to be more active, but Clayton (2011) suggests that the flexion does not increase overall and therefore does not improve limb movement in terms of what is required in dressage," Hawson explained. "

" In summary, horses have lived and worked without leg coverings for eons. While there is an increased risk of bumps and bangs arising on horses being worked without leg protection there is also sufficient evidence that some types of leg coverings may actually contribute to damage in the limb they are trying to protect "

Her er også et en artikel, men studie i.
http://www.thehorse.com/articles/25231/researching-horse-boots

" By Jennifer O. Bryant Mar 1, 2010 Topics: Safety Tack Thoroughbred Racing
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Researching Horse Boots
Photo: Stephanie L. Church, Editor-in-Chief

Researchers call for industry standards and testing of horse boots because some don’t protect legs, and some can even be harmful.
Equine legs are at the mercy of a lot of potential blows--the strike of an opposite leg's powerful overreaching stride, the impact of contacting a solid fence, the unexpected encounter with a sharp object in the field. If you're like many conscientious owners, you'll do just about anything to protect those precious lower legs from injury, and you've recruited everything from traditional polo wraps to fancy "support boots" to help. But according to equine researchers, many boots and bandages provide inadequate protection at best, or increased damage at worst.

"Some materials offer protection against concussion, but are ineffective against penetration, and other materials have the opposite problem in that they protect against penetration, but do not reduce concussion damage," says David Marlin, PhD, associate dean for research at Hartpury College, in the U.K., who focuses his research on equine exercise physiology and biochemistry and is the author of more than 200 research papers and book chapters. "It's almost impossible to predict which boots will do what until you either test them and/or take a knife and open them up."

Currently the International Chairman of the International Conference on Equine Exercise Physiology (ICEEP), Marlin's high-profile research projects have included the studies of heat and humidity's effects on horses in advance of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Among his concerns about boots: the effects of their weight on gait biomechanics, and their ability to trap potentially harmful heat against the animal's leg. But first, there's the issue of support, which he discussed along with Rachel Murray, MA, VetMB, MS, PhD, MRCVS, Dipl. ACVS, ECVS, head of the Centre for Equine Studies at the Animal Health Trust, last year at a seminar organized by Equilibrium Products Ltd., a British maker of leg boots and other equine accoutrements. Equilibrium, in its own research-and-development practice, noted the variability in protective abilities among a variety of boots was extreme, so it organized the conference as a call-to-arms for the industry on the need for minimum protection standards and an industry-wide testing methodology. About 50 veterinarians, riders, industry officials, and media representatives attended the invitation-only event, according to Marlin.

Heat and Weight Factors

High price, sturdy-looking construction, space-age materials--no external factor has emerged as a reliable predictor of good protection, Marlin says. "We have taken boots that look good, and then been surprised at how poorly they have performed in tests."

Although many equestrians purchase so-called support boots in the hopes of guarding against pulled suspensory ligaments and other common soft tissue injuries, little evidence exists that a leg boot can offer sufficient support to be called effective, notes Murray, whose specialties include lameness, sport horse performance issues, and the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnosis of bone and soft-tissue injuries. She is also an FEI-level dressage rider and competitor, lending to her insight on the consumer side of these various types of boots. "