Relationship Between Postural Stability and Paraspinal Muscle Adaptation in Lame Horses Undergoing Rehabilitation

Postural stability maintains balance, protects the spinal column, and allows accurate responses to destabilizing forces. The musculus multifidus (m. multifidus) is the major postural muscle located adjacent to the vertebrae along the length of the spinal column. Increased cross-sectional area (CSA) of the m. multifidus has been demonstrated in horses after a rehabilitation strengthening exercise program; however, correlation with functional postural stability has not been shown. The objective of the present study is to evaluate the relationship of the thoracolumbar m. multifidus CSA and measures of postural sway performance in lame horses undergoing rehabilitation exercises in clinical cases. Seven client-owned horses admitted to the equine rehabilitation service were included in the study. M. multifidus CSA was measured via ultrasonography at the start of a rehabilitation program (initial evaluation) and after 12 weeks of rehabilitation exercises (final evaluation). Postural sway data were also measured at initial and final evaluation. A significant increase in m. multifidus CSA was seen from initial to final evaluation. A moderate to strong correlation was present between m. multifidus CSA and postural sway variables. These results suggest that there is an association between postural stability and m. multifidus hypertrophy in lame horses undergoing individualized rehabilitation programs. However, more research is needed to provide a definitive answer on the nature of this relationship. Ideally, specific performance tests would better define and examine the relationship in which to guide clinicians in rehabilitation protocol development.     

Effect of Caudal Traction on Mechanical Nociceptive Thresholds of Epaxial and Pelvic Musculature on a Group of Horses With Signs of Back Pain

Direct muscular attachment from lumbar vertebrae to the caudal vertebrae of the tail suggests that caudal traction, also described as a tail pull, may affect lumbar vertebral segments and/or associated soft tissues in horses. Traction is a commonly used human manual therapy technique used for pain relief and anecdotally observed to relieve pain in horses. However, research is lacking validating the efficacy of manual caudal traction on the horse. The objective of this study was to determine if caudal traction has an effect on mechanical nociceptive thresholds (MNTs) in a group of horses with clinical signs of back pain. Pressure algometry was used to measure MNTs of five bilateral anatomical sites in the epaxial and pelvic musculature of 11 horses referred to physiotherapy because of clinical signs of back pain. Measurements were recorded both before and immediately after traction. A significant difference (P ≤ .05) was identified between mean before and after caudal traction algometry measurements in all described sites. The percentage of MNT increase was highest in the thoracic region (83%) compared with the lumbar (50%) and the pelvic (52.4%) regions. These results support an effect of caudal traction in increasing MNTs in the thoracolumbar and pelvic regions in horses. Further research to determine the clinical effect of this technique is warranted.     

Effects of postfire seeding and fertilizing on hillslope erosion in north-central Washington,USA

After the 1998 North 25 Fire in the Wenatchee National Forest, eight study sites were established on steep, severely burned hillslopes to examine the effectiveness of postfire seeding and fertilizing treatments in increasing cover to reduce hillslope erosion, and to measure the nutrient content of the eroded sediment. At each site, four 4 by 9 m plots were located with four randomly applied treatments: seed (winter wheat, Triticum estivum) at 34 kg ha^− 1, fertilizer (75% ammonium nitrate and 25% ammonium sulfate) at 31 kg ha^− 1, seed and fertilizer, and untreated control. Sediment fences were installed at the base of each plot to measure erosion rates and sample the eroded sediments. In addition, precipitation amounts and intensities, surface cover, canopy cover, and nutrient concentrations in the eroded sediments were measured for four years after the fire. Total precipitation was below average during the four-year study period, and most erosion occurred during short duration, moderate intensity summer rainfall events. The overall first year mean erosion rate was 16 Mg ha^− 1 yr^− 1, and this decreased significantly in the second year to 0.66 Mg ha^− 1 yr^− 1. There were no significant differences in erosion rates between treatments. In the first year, the seeded winter wheat provided 4.5% canopy cover, about a fourth of the total canopy cover, on the seeded plots; however, the total canopy cover on the seeded plots did not differ from the unseeded plots. The below average precipitation in the spring after seeding may have affected the winter wheat survival rate. In the fourth year of the study, the mean canopy cover in the fertilization treatment plots was 74%, and this was greater than the 55% mean canopy cover in the unfertilized plots (p = 0.04); however, there was no accompanying reduction in erosion rate for either the seeding or fertilization treatments. Revegetation by naturally occurring species was apparently not impacted by seeding during the four years of this study. The pH of the sediment as well as the concentrations of NO₃–N, NH₄–N, and K was not affected by seeding or fertilizing. The nutrient loads in the eroded sediment were minimal, with most of the nutrient loss occurring in the first postfire year. These results confirm that seeding success is highly dependent on rainfall intensity, amounts, and timing, and that soil nutrients lost in eroded sediments are unlikely to impair the site productivity.     

Rehabilitation Experiment at Menzel Habib,Southern Tunisia

This long - term rehabilitation experiment is located near Menzel Habib, in the arid zone of southern Tunisia in a site with unambiguously degraded vegetation and soil, caused by a decades - old practice of overexploitation (grazing and plow agriculture). The fundamental premise is that by reintroducing an appropriate combination of native perennial plants, a simplified version of a previously occurring vegetation (and ecosystem) could be reinstated that would utilize the sparse and irregular water resources available in an efficient and complementary fashion, while also showing considerable resistance and resilience to moderate livestock grazing. The long - term goal is, on the basis of such a simplified system, to progressively achieve, through additional reintroductions and other manipulations, a state similar to that of the "ecosystem of reference," an example of which is provided in the nearby Bou Hedma National Park. In this paper we report various aspects of the experiment related to germination and establishment of four supposed keystone species (Rhanterium suaveolens, Plantago albicans, Stipa lagascae, and Cenchrus ciliaris) sown in field conditions, and compared to the ecosystem of reference for a number of parameters related to the structure and functioning of the ecosystems under study. Over a 4 - year period, distinct changes in the desired direction were observed in the experimental plots, and positive effects of controlled grazing were also recorded.     

河道水流特性对河流生态环境的影响

河道水流特性主要包括水位、流量、流速及其分布、动水压强等,水流特性与河床的边界条件密切相关,而河床边界又是联系河道水流与生态系统的载体与纽带。本文从河道水流特性与生态环境之间的关系入手,阐述了河道水流特性对水生生物的影响,分析了水生生物生长状况的变化所导致的水流环境的变化。论述了河道中的局部建筑物(闸坝工程)在除害兴利、造福人类的同时,给河道生态环境带来的负面影响,河道的渠化和改道造成生态环境多样化的减少乃至消失。从河道水流特性与生态系统协调发展、人与自然和谐共处的角度,给出了河道生态修复的基本原则及措施。本文对于水利工程的规划设计、河道整治、生态修复、环境保护等领域具有一定的实践指导意义。     

番禺区主要植被类型及其改造途径

根据番禺地区的植被状况,采取样线调查方法,以小班为单位,对小班内的森林群落学因子进行实地调查记录,采集的数据包括样线上的物种名称、种群数量、平均树高、平均胸径、生长势、健康状况以及土壤、坡向、坡位、坡度等立地因子,分析现有植被类型的物种组成、林分结构等群落学特征,依据生态功能为主、兼顾景观功能的指导思想,提出了该区域典型植被亚热带常绿针叶林、亚热带次生常绿阔叶林、桉树相思类林、经济林等的改造路径和方法。