Kyphosis most cases of kyphosis are mild and only require routine monitoring, serious cases can be debilitating. High degrees of kyphosis can cause severe pain and discomfort, breathing and digestion difficulties, cardiovascular irregularities, neurological compromise and, in the more severe cases, significantly shortened life spans. These types of high-end curves typically do not respond well to conservative treatment and almost always warrant spinal fusion surgery, which can restore the body's natural degree of curvature. Prevalence of kyphosis has been linked to nasal obstruction in a study. The risk of serious complications from spinal fusion surgery for kyphosis is estimated to be
Henneke horse body condition scoring system before the race due to their high exercise levels, possibly also leading to a decrease in muscle mass. They explain the differences of results between the studies in part in that the participating horses of the 1990 Purina Race of Champions have had to qualify before and present a more highly-performing field of horses. Both Tevis Cup studies found that horses with a higher body condition score had, however, a significantly higher rate of not finishing the race due to lameness. Horses on pasture should enter the winter season at a body condition score of 6 or 7. On extremely