Assessment of modified Forssell’s myectomy success rate in the treatment of crib biting in horses

• Published in: Acta veterinaria Brno Vol. 84; no. 1; pp. 63 - 69
• Main Authors: Krisová, Šárka, Žert, Zdeněk, Žuffová, Kristína
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• ISSN: 0001-7213; 1801-7576
• DOI: 10.2754/avb201585010063

The objective of this retrospective study was to assess the success rate of Forssell’s modified myectomy – surgical treatment of crib biting on 33 horses of various breeds identified as stereotypical cribbers which were referred to the Equine Clinic in Brno between January 2001 and December 2010. The long term outcome was available for all horses. The overall success of the surgery without considering influencing factors was 61%. Thirteen horses (39%) returned to the stereotypical behaviour sooner or later after the surgery. In this retrospective study we confirmed the dependence of success of the surgery on the necessity of early treatment of the problem (up to 6 months after the appearance of initial signs), with the significance level of P = 0.037. Any connection between age, breed or sex, and positive outcome of the surgery were not confirmed during statistical evaluation. When the horses were diagnosed early enough, an 80% success rate in surgical treatment performed within 6 months from the initial signs of crib biting was recorded, which seems to be very promising. It can be concluded that surgical treatment of crib biting by modified Forsell’s myectomy is the recommended option in the therapy of this oral stereotype.