14/08/2026
🐴 Could the type of noseband affect the risk of mouth lesions?
Which aspects of competition equipment are most closely associated with injuries in horses? At the ISES 2026 Conference, Professor Uta König von Borstel presented findings from a large study investigating equipment and oral and lower leg lesions in Icelandic competition horses.
The dataset included more than 6,000 competition starts from almost 3,000 horses across Germany, Denmark and Switzerland. Trained stewards recorded equipment alongside the presence, location and severity of lesions during standardised post competition checks.
Overall, 14% of starts involved oral lesions, most of which were superficial, while lower leg lesions were recorded in around 1% of starts.
When researchers examined equipment, one of the clearest findings involved noseband design. Horses wearing cavessons with a lower noseband, including flash, drop, Micklem and anatomic designs, had a substantially greater risk of oral lesions than horses wearing English cavessons without a lower noseband or no noseband.
The updated analysis presented at the conference also identified differences between bit types. Ported bits were associated with a higher risk of oral lesions compared with some other designs. This is particularly interesting given that ported bits may be promoted as providing greater tongue freedom.
Lower leg injuries, meanwhile, were not clearly explained by boot use or weight, suggesting other factors such as management and horse interactions may contribute.
Importantly, the study shows associations rather than proving that particular equipment directly caused the lesions.
The key message? Equipment design matters. In this large competition dataset, lower nosebands showed a particularly clear relationship with oral lesions, highlighting the need to critically consider how equipment may restrict a horse’s ability to respond to pressure.
