Barbaro's Vet: 'His Leg Looks Excellent'

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Edited press release
Dr. Dean W. Richardson, chief of surgery at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center, on Tuesday got his first look at the right rear leg of Barbaro since he performed surgery on the colt and reported "his leg looks excellent."

Richardson was able to view the progress when the cast on the leg of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner was changed Tuesday.

"The incision has healed well and judging by the radiographs, the graft is opacifying ('taking')," Richardson said. "Callus is forming nicely, and all of the implants (plate and screws) look unchanged."

The cast was replaced under general anesthesia, and Barbaro had a very smooth pool recovery.

Barbaro, who is recovering from a shattered hind leg sustained at the Preakness Stakes (gr. I), continues to please veterinarians at the George D. Widener Hospital for Large Animals, and he remains in intensive care at the New Bolton Center.

The cast, enclosing the hoof and running up to just below the hock, was put in place May 21 following Barbaro's surgery. During the operation, a device called a locking compression plate, or LCP, was employed to stabilize the injured area, with 27 screws used on the 16-hole plate.

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