Bella Ciao, a 3-year-old filly trained by father-and-son team Alessandro and Antonio San, and owned by Cairoli Racing Stable and Magic Stables LLC, sustained a condylar fracture to her right front leg in April of 2019. She had just finished breezing at Gulfstream Park West in Miami Gardens, FL, when the break occurred.
Palm Beach Equine Clinic took on the filly's case, with Dr. Robert Brusie leading the care team. A condylar fracture occurs after repetitive strain fractures the cannon bone during high-speed work. On an X-ray, the fracture looks like a crack that goes up the cannon bone and out the side, breaking off a corner of the cannon bone.
These fractures can be incomplete and non-displaced, meaning that the bone has not chipped off and is in its original position. Complete, displaced fractures mean that the fragment has moved away from the cannon bone; these types of condylar fractures are more difficult to repair.
Dr. Brusie surgically repaired the fracture with screws and recommended stall rest and handwalking for the first few months after she had surgery. The filly went back to the track at the end of October in a $45,000 allowance race, which she won.
The filly has won additional races in 2020, proving that not all condylar fractures are career ending.
Read more at Palm Beach Equine Clinic.
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