Animal fracture models have been extensively applied to preclinical
research as a platform to identify and characterize normal and abnormal
physiological processes and to develop specific maneuvers that alter the
biology and biomechanics being examined. The choice of animal model employed
in a study bears a direct relationship to the specific intervention being
analyzed. The animal models employed should be described clearly,
control-group data should be established, and reproducibility should be
defined from experiment to experiment and from institution to institution so
that quantitative and qualitative outcomes can be reliably compared and
contrasted to other related studies.