steroids | Horse Racing Free Tips

Mahmood Al Zarooni, who in April 2013 was banned eight years by the British Horseracing Authority after 11 horses in his care tested positive for banned anabolic steroids, is planning a return to training in the UAE with his ban having recently come to an end, Racing Post reports. Al Zarooni told that publication he will begin training from Sharjah Equestrian and Racing Club in the coming weeks and expects to have 20 horses in his care.

Al Zarooni was a private trainer for Godolphin based in Newmarket at the time of his rule breach, and had won 12 Group 1s for Sheikh Mohammed in the three years he was employed by him. Al Zarooni told Racing Post he takes responsibility for the steroids scandal that engulfed him, having admitted in 2013 that he himself brought the drugs into the country, though he claims he thought he could administer them to horses that weren't racing and that he wasn't trying to enhance performance.

“I have to rebuild my reputation,” he said. “What I did was a big mistake, I learned a lot of lessons and now I have to prove myself again and show this mistake will not happen again.”

“I want to make my file white,” he added. “Many people when they hear the name Al Zarooni will think of the black mark [next to his name] because of doping horses and say, 'He's a cheater'. I want to prove I was not a cheater, I never even thought about that. It was a mistake, but my horses weren't doped for racing, it was to help them heal. Most of these horses have been through hard work and they have small problems. Some have suspensory or tendon problems and it helps them heal. That was the idea. My horses were never caught in any race because it was never anything I did when they were racing.”

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Drs. Katya Potter, Kim Stevens and Nicola Menzies-Gow have completed a study that challenges the belief that corticosteroids increased a horse's risk of developing laminitis. The scientists note that the concern of laminitis is based on only a handful of reports, though multiple studies have been done dispelling the notion that all horses given corticosteroids are at risk of the painful hoof condition.

The veterinarians reviewed case histories of 410 horses that had been treated at two equine clinics. Half of the horses had received standard doses of corticosteroids as part of their treatment protocol; the other 205 were “control” horses that were treated at the clinic, but did not receive corticosteroids. The scientists recorded the age, breed, sex and medical history of each horse and then noted if the horse developed laminitis in the two weeks after treatment. They found that only four of the 410 horses developed laminitis: two that had received corticosteroids and two that had not.

They also completed a second part of the study where they collected the same information on 1,565 horses treated at both clinics with corticosteroids. They found that 10 horses developed laminitis, meaning that less than 1 percent of horses given corticosteroids developed laminitis.

The researchers determined that this is no higher an incidence than the general equine population; the risk of developing laminitis was similar whether they had been treated with corticosteroids or not. However, the study revealed some similarities among the horses that developed laminitis: Some had previously developed laminitis or were obese; others had equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) or pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID). Many of those who developed laminitis were ponies.

The scientists note that it is impossible to determine if the administration of corticosteroids contributed to the occurrence of laminitis—it is just as likely that they developed laminitis because of other risk factors, and it's just is coincidence that it occurred while the horse was being treated with corticosteroids.

The team reminds owners who have a horse that is overweight or has an endocrine disorder that they should be cautious about laminitis year-round, not just when the horse is receiving corticosteroids.

Tag: steroids

Al Zarooni Planning Return To Training

Additional Proof That Corticosteroids Don’t Increase Laminitis Risk For Horses