Why the Zebra?

Why the Zebra?

The zebra was chosen to represent rare disease based on a quote from Dr. Theodore Woodward: “When you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras.” and “When you hear hoofbeats behind you, don’t expect to see a zebra.”

Dr. Woodward used this metaphor to teach the diagnosis of diseases. When examining the symptoms of patients, he taught to think of a more commonly encountered hoofed animal, the horse, rather than a zebra, considered to be more rare and less encountered.

We now use the zebra to represent rare for awareness and to teach that rare disorders are actually not rare. 1 in 10 people live with a rare disorder and there are over 7,000 rare disorders. We should be thinking zebra when considering diagnoses.