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Gluck Professor Assisted With FDA Approval Of COVID-19 Testing Device

Dr. Ted Kalbfleisch, an associate professor at the University of Kentucky in the Gluck Equine Research Center, was a member of a research team that sought emergency FDA approval for a veterinary device to be used to help test for COVID-19.

Veterinarians have had the ability to run real-time assays in the field for years. One of the commonly used devices was developed by MatMaCorp out of Lincoln, NE. The self-contained unit is about the size of a laptop; it can provide results to vets in one to two hours, without requiring the horse to be brought to an equine hospital.

It was quickly realized that this technology, which is familiar to veterinarians, could play a vital role in the fight against COVID-19 in humans. Kalbfleisch and other members of the team were able to get the unit approved by the FDA; the COVID assay it tests for has now been approved for use in CLIA-approved laboratories. Future research will focus on a device that can be utilized in the field for COVID-19 testing.

‘Cake’ Proves Too Tempting To Resist For After The Races Volunteer

When it comes to volunteering at a Thoroughbred adoption nonprofit, the ultimate reward for volunteers can be spending time with the four-legged creatures in their care.

Before stepping foot on the grounds of TAA-accredited After the Races, volunteer Susan Miller repeatedly told herself that taking a horse home was out of the question. The time spent around the horses would be enough of a prize for her hard work.

That mantra didn't last long as she immediately fell in love with a bay filly, named The Cake Is a Lie, who was rehabbing an injury.

“My first day there I fell head over heels for this filly, despite having told myself I was not under any circumstances taking a horse home,” Miller said. “'Cake' was rehabbing a bowed tendon, so there wasn't much interest in her.

The New York-bred daughter of Sir Whimsey found the winner's circle four times in 13 starts. She was injured and vanned off in her last start, which took place in August of 2018 at Monmouth Park.

“She stayed at After The Races, and I kept volunteering there, loving on her as much as I could, and daydreaming about adopting her,” Miller said.

After months of volunteering and growing closer to Cake, Miller and her husband were on the move to Kentucky after her husband accepted a new job. Not wanting to leave her friend behind, she adopted Cake to bring along for the journey.

“I kept telling myself, 'She's just a gangly bay filly, nothing special,' but it didn't work,” Miller said. “There's just something special about her and we clicked. She's wonderful. She lives at my house with my other Thoroughbred.

“Her bowed tendon healed nicely, she's grown and filled out into a huge, strong, shiny beauty,” she added. “Most importantly, her personality has really blossomed. She is quirky and intense but also fun, sweet, and caring.”

Now that the rehab is finished, Cake and Miller are taking it one day at a time with retraining, as they focus on lower-level dressage, trail riding, and learning a few tricks.

“She is the first OTTB I've retrained by myself and she is teaching me so much and becoming a really fun horse to ride,” Miller said. “My biggest goal is just for her to be happy and healthy and enjoy our time together.

“She's already worked hard and given a lot for people, and I value her comfort and the relationship I have with her more than riding achievements.”

While Miller says she'd love to eventually dabble in eventing or fox hunting if it's in Cake's wheelhouse, she's just incredibly thankful for the organization that allowed her to find her perfect equine partner.

“I am so incredibly grateful for this horse and to After The Races for all the fantastic work they do on behalf of OTTBs,” she said.

Read more at Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.

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Horses That Struggle With Attention May Be Battling Pain

Horses that ignore their surroundings (including their handlers) may not be cranky or depressed—they may be in pain. Drs. Louise Dodds, Laura Knight, Kate Allen and Joanna Murrell created a study that tested the reactions of 20 horses to novel objects and sounds just before and after they underwent a surgical procedure. They compared the surgical horse's reactions to those of 16 control horses who didn't have surgery.

The research team found that the surgical horses spent significantly less time interacting with a pool noodle and a flipper immediately after surgery than they did before the surgery. There was no difference in interaction times in the control horses when they encountered the objects a second time.

Surgical horses also were less likely to react to the noise of a hair dryer after surgery than before. The response of the control horses did not change from one exposure to the next.

The scientists conclude that pain effect a horse's response and startle times. Exposing the horse to a situation that demands attention may be a useful biomarker of pain, they say.

Kentucky Regulators Express Concern About Fluphenazine And Its Considerable Staying Power

Members of the Kentucky Equine Drug Research Council voted Friday to withdraw existing guidance for racetrack practitioners about the use of fluphenazine after officials became aware that the drug can linger in a horse's body much longer than once thought.

Fluphenazine is used as an anti-psychotic drug in humans and a long-term sedative in horses. Under Kentucky's current guidance, it's considered a Class B drug, meaning it's considered to have a potential to influence racehorses' performance, but not as much potential as those drugs in Class A. Fluphenazine is an oil-based drug and is typically given subcutaneously, meaning under the skin.

Current guidance advises veterinarians to withdraw the drug seven days before a race. Dr. Bruce Howard, equine medical director for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, said he got a call from a practicing veterinarian a few months ago asking whether that guidance was correct, which prompted him to do a deep dive into the data available about fluphenazine use in horses.

What he discovered was that the seven day withdrawal suggestion on the books in Kentucky had been in place since 2004, before the advent of instrumentation testing for drugs in post-race samples. The ELISA kit method that was being used at that time was considerably less sensitive than current methods.

(Learn more about drug testing methods and why they matter in this 2014 Paulick Report feature.)

Howard found two unpublished studies, each consisting of only three horses, which claimed the drug could persist “for weeks” in the horse, while a conversation with California officials suggested it may even linger in a horse's system “for months.” That's because, in part, it has a very long half life, meaning the amount of time it takes for the total amount of the drug in the body to be reduced by 50%. While the half life for many drugs can be measured in hours, Howard's findings suggest that of fluphenazine could be 6.8 to 9.6 days. It's also possible that after an initial decrease in drug levels, fluphenazine concentrations might paradoxically increase again about 15 days after dosing.

Other racing groups have suggested that the drug be stopped for 45 to 60 days before racing, or possibly even longer.

“It appears to me from this information that the seven day withdrawal is really inadequate,” said Howard. “I don't think there's a credible study to make a withdrawal recommendation at this time.”

Instead, Howard suggests that trainers request a blood test on horses that have previously had fluphenazine before entering a race to verify whether they're under the required threshold in Kentucky. This could prove especially challenging in situations where a horse may have received the drug at the start of the year, gone to sale as a 2-year-old, and returned with an eye toward making a first start in April or May, as new connections may not know whether the drug had been given or not. In those scenarios, Howard said that a record of a treatment could serve as a “mitigating circumstance” for a trainer who had followed the seven-day guidance before the commission rescinded the guideline.

Fortunately, Howard said there have been no fluphenazine violations in Kentucky since 2009 and several veterinary members of the council agreed they don't think it's commonly used anymore for a variety of reasons.

The council agreed unanimously to rescind the seven-day guidance, on the condition Howard send additional warnings to practicing veterinarians about the issue.

The removal of the rule outlining the seven day guidance will now advance to the full Kentucky Horse Racing Commission for a vote before continuing through the legislature for final approval.

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