Knowledge about non-invasive methods for early diagnostics in equine orthopedic disorders is economically important and has been widely studied. In this study, bone mineral density determined by radiographic absorptiometry was correlated to bone resistance of the equine third metacarpal bone submitted to biomechanical testing. Thirty pairs of third metacarpal bone of adult horses were collected, dissected, radiographed, analyzed by the radiographic absorptiometry technique, and submitted to tomographic study and biomechanical testing. No significant linear correlation between radiographic bone density values and measured biomechanical properties was observed. Therefore, bone mineral density of the third metacarpal bone determined by radiographic absorptiometry does not predict bone capacity to resist compression and flexion loads. Further studies should be developed to establish which techniques are reliably capable of giving such predictive information.
