Any one the back on track leg wraps? Likes/dislikes? Effective?

[vxf111]

I have to admit, I always skipped right by the pages in the Dover catalog with the magnetic/ceramic wraps, figuring it was a bunch of hooey. Recently, two very well-respected horsepersons mentioned that they used the back on track ceramic leg wraps and saw results.

The use would be for a horse with tenosynovitis (inflammation of the fluid-filled sheath surrounding the tendon in his fetlock). The ultrasound showed no tear, just swelling/inflamation. He’s been on stall rest/cold therapy for a month and a half. He’s also getting Surpass. The swelling doesn’t seem to be decreasing, and the vet suggested wrapping him at night.

Rather than just use standing wraps, I thought maybe I’d try the back on track wraps-- if people have found them effective.

Assuming they are effective, which do you think are better? The ones that are like standing wraps or the ones that are more like a boot with velcro? I feel like the boot style are probably easier to use, but the standing wrap style might be easier to get tight in and around the leg so there’s actually wrap to skin contact without gaps.

[Evalee_Hunter]

I have not used the Back on Track wraps. However, my brother gave me a ceramic fiber knee cover for myself & I do wear it to bed when my knee is bothering me & I feel it helps. This should be enough to get Deltaware in here to josh us for being so gullible.

[ponyjumper4]

The Back on Track products are also available for humans, which is where the company started before branching out into equine products. They are very effective and a lot of riders use them. A friend of mine uses hers on her event horses and they recover very nicely, one with a tendon injury injury healed quicker. I want one of the blankets for my cold backed mare, as well as the leg wraps.

[lindat]

I just met a lady yesterday that had the standing wraps and a pad for the back that she said made a difference with her horse.
I have not used these products personally but I have used a variety of magnetic and FIR products with great results.

[MassageLady]

The magnets in them help to promote circulation and to keep the energy flowing in that area. That is what helps to heal it quicker. :yes: It’s basic science. We are all made up of atoms…protons, electrons and neutrons-which we have been taught are positive/negative and neutral energy. The magnets just get the atoms moving, which helps with the circulation…same as those who do energy balancing.

[lindat]

[QUOTE=MassageLady;3067154]
The magnets in them help to promote circulation and to keep the energy flowing in that area. That is what helps to heal it quicker. :yes: It’s basic science. We are all made up of atoms…protons, electrons and neutrons-which we have been taught are positive/negative and neutral energy. The magnets just get the atoms moving, which helps with the circulation…same as those who do energy balancing.[/QUOTE]

Do these wraps have magnetic components or just the ceramic? What we use have both, but I think Back on Track is just ceramic energy technology…I’ll have to check.

[Candle]

Back on Track isn’t magnetic, and it’s done awesome things for my back. I’d try the leg wraps on your horse. The company recommends doing it slowly at first, four hours at a time or so.

[Simkie]

I think magnets are hooey, but this looks interesting.

Would this help my girl with a questionable fetlock? She has a cold osselet, a chip was removed, and depo-deposits were debrided. Post-surgical soreness in the joint was treated first with HA injections and then with IRAP. I Surpass the joint before we work. I’m not sure if warming the joint before we work would help or not. I’m trying to do everything possible to keep her comfortable…

[vxf111]

My trainer is one of the people who suggested the wraps. She had a mare with 2 small chip/breaks in her splint bone. Apparently the mare was sound and fine when worked slowly/carefully and warmed up well before work. The wraps were one way the tried to keep the area warmed up.

I dunno… I am tempted because what’s more money down the tube if it WORKS. And if it doesn’t work and does no harm, he was supposed to be wrapped in standing bandages-- and this is just another form of wraps…

I wish there was some more concrete evidence about the efficacy of the wraps.

[trubandloki]

I used back on track no bows when my horse was healing a pulled check ligament. The vet said we could not have expected better healing. Did the back on track wraps make the difference? Who knows. But they certainly did not hurt anything.

[Bogie]

I think the magnets are hooey, too. I’m not sure there’s any science to recommend them ;). Most of the scientists on this board seem skeptical at best :lol:.

That said, I have the Back on Track quarter-sheet like blanket for one of my horses as he’s cold-backed. It’s helped tremendously. I believe that what these do is reflect heat effectively so they warm up the area quickly. I’ve considered buying their knee wrap for myself!

[lindat]

I just had to comment on “magnets are hooey” thoughts…I was really skeptical also - and back when I started using them there were very few studies or little scientific information on their relationship to health and healing. So I used numerous designs and products for 5 years - YES, they do work if designed properly. They have to - simple laws of physics.
Now there are MANY medical studies, research papers, etc. that show what happens with circulation, nerve health, etc…if anyone is interested I can send them some of the links! :- )
There is not as much “proof” or research on the ceramic/FIR but it is out there and I can forward that info also…

[Simkie]

I would be interested in seeing a peer-reviewed study of magnets that has been published in a credible scientific journal. Please let me know where I can find such a paper.

(I really seriously doubt you’ll be able to point me to anything. AFAIK, there is ZERO actual research that show magnets, other than the LARGE electromagnets, do ANYTHING.)

[ponyjumper4]

@Bogie;3067399

I believe that what these do is reflect heat effectively so they warm up the area quickly. I’ve considered buying their knee wrap for myself!

That is correct, it reflects the horse’s own natural body heat to keep that specific area warm.

[lindat]

Simkie, now it would have been rather silly of me to offer links to studies if they didn’t exist, wouldn’t it?

I do understand your skepticism and I must say I appreciate your willingness to look at the studies - sometimes people who are skeptical are also unwilling to be open to possibilities…

Anyway, here is a link to an abstract from a study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology using static magnetics.
http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/103/2/629

I don’t have a link for this one but I emailed abstract to you and also complete study for the link above…

“Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy (DPN) is a common and often disabling complication of diabetes mellitus (DM)…. As many as 16 million diabetics in the United States will experience neuropathic pain at some point in their lives.”
So begins a report in the May 5, 2003, issue of the Archives of Physical Medicine that concludes: “the present study provides convincing data
confirming that the constant wearing of static, permanent, magnetic insoles produces statistically significant reduction of neuropathic pain.”

Weintraub, M. 1999. Magnetic bio-stimulation in painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy: A novel intervention-a randomized, double-placebo crossover study. American Journal of Pain Management 9: 8-17

Let me know what you think or if you want more…

[lindat]

[QUOTE=Simkie;3067230]
I think magnets are hooey, but this looks interesting.

Would this help my girl with a questionable fetlock? She has a cold osselet, a chip was removed, and depo-deposits were debrided. Post-surgical soreness in the joint was treated first with HA injections and then with IRAP. I Surpass the joint before we work. I’m not sure if warming the joint before we work would help or not. I’m trying to do everything possible to keep her comfortable…[/QUOTE]

I am really curious as to why you would think magnets are hooey yet you find ceramics interesting…

BTW - I am NOT being sarcastic or argumentative at all. Just curious as to what your experiences were that led you to this belief. There are many poorly designed magnetic products that DO NOT offer benefits - just wondering if you had some experience with them or ???

[elmerandharriet]

i have the back on track polos and a saddle pad and have had good luck

[Simkie]

Ceramics do not purport to have a magnetic field which penetrates tissues. They only claim to reflect body heat back to the horse. What they claim to do is FAR simpler than what the magnet people claim to do.

This abstract: http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/103/2/629 is interesting, but I do not see magnet strength reported anywhere. It also seems to claim magnets decrease venous and arterial diameter, which does not seem congruent with magnets supposedly increasing blood flow.

I can find several articles very quickly that demonstrate magnets do nothing, other than have a strong placebo effect:

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=155398

http://www.japmaonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/87/1/11

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10714732?dopt=Abstract

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7138256

etc…

How do you refute these studies?

[CBoylen]

We use the BOT wraps (the no-bows are what you want to go with, the pillows are huge), and I’ve found them to work well. They really help a horse of mine that tends to stock up, better than regular wraps do. We also used them on a horse that had a tendon sheath problem that kept swelling, and they made a significant difference in the swelling (although they didn’t fix the actual problem, which required surgery, just in case it sounds like I’m touting a miracle ;)). I see most barns have at least a couple pairs. I’m coveting the mesh sheet, and I’ve asked around about it and people find it effective as well (although damn expensive).

I wouldn’t recommend using them at the same time as surpass though, you’re technically not supposed to use any liniment or any medicine under them, especially when they’re new and the horse isn’t used to them. I’ve seen people get away with using some things, but I’ve also heard horror stories about horses tearing up the wraps and the stalls when someone put them on unclean legs.

The other thing you may want to try is finding access to a Gameready, maybe stepping up your cold therapy would make the difference? I think they rent them.

[spoiledsweet]

We use the BOT wraps (the no-bows are what you want to go with, the pillows are huge), and I’ve found them to work well. They really help a horse of mine that tends to stock up, better than regular wraps do. We also used them on a horse that had a tendon sheath problem that kept swelling, and they made a significant difference in the swelling (although they didn’t fix the actual problem,

Ditto. I am a very big fan of BOT products for the horses. I have the no-bows, the mesh sheet (just got it, so I can’t comment yet on how well it works) and the polos. I also use the shirt and back brace on myself. They really do help with flexibility and pain relief. Do they speed healing? That I don’t know. They certainly can’t hurt.