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New Test Can Detect Bisphosphonate Three Years After Administration

A new study may give regulators the key to better regulate bisphosphonate use in racing. Controversy has surrounded bisphosphonate use since the drug became approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in horses. Bisphosphonates are labeled for adult horses battling navicular syndrome and similar chronic conditions that don't respond to other types of treatment.

The FDA has licensed two bisphosphonates, which are sold under the trade names Tildren and Osphos. The Horse reports that there are other, non-licensed versions of bisphosphonates marketed for horses which are not FDA-approved. Those non-approved products are advertised as being more powerful than the two approved versions.

The FDA prohibits the use of bisphosphonates in horses younger than four years old, but some owners and trainers continue to use the product off-label on young horses. Bisphosphonates impact the build-up/breakdown cycle in bone, which veterinarians say could have negative effects on growing animals.

Dr. Christopher Riggs, chief advisor in veterinary science at The Hong Kong Jockey Club, studied 24 Thoroughbreds who had received a single therapeutic dose of tiludronate disodium between one month to three years earlier. The research team then tested blood plasma and urine samples using ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography high‐resolution mass spectrometry, a new testing technology. The tests found traces of tiludronate disodium in every sample.

Previously, testing was only able to detect bisphosphonates in equine blood or urine if it had been administered in the last 40 days. Hair testing could detect an administration from months prior, but is limited in its ability to pinpoint the time of administration.

Researchers believe the drug lingers on the surface of bone, occasionally releasing back into the horse's body for months or years, but little is known about how long that effect could go on. The drug may be more detectable in horses that are going through training and rest periods that affect bone remodeling.

Horses Better At Adding Than Some Humans

A study from Germany suggests that horses may be more mathematically inclined than originally thought. Researchers from the University of Gottingen trained three Shetland ponies to choose images that matched a specific visual cue.

First Drs. Vivian Gabor and Martina Gerken taught the ponies to walk up to a device and press a button; they were rewarded each time they approached the device and eventually for pressing one of the buttons.

Next, the ponies were shown a computer screen on the device that had a stimulus image in the center, and two images below it—one of which matched the stimulus. Each time the pony touched the image that matched the stimulus image, he got a treat delivered through a tube. To make sure the ponies weren't just selecting a familiar symbol, the researchers changed the options on the computer screen each time.

Once the ponies learned this, the scientists ran the same test, but used different quantities of the same image. For example, the stimulus image may show two dots; the options below may show two options: one with two dots and one with three. If the ponies chose the two-dot choice, they got a treat.

The researchers varied the size and arrangement of the images to ensure the ponies were choosing options based on numbers alone and not on other visual cues. The final phase of the study used images that were groupings of different geometric symbols, such as a cross, triangle and rhombus.

All three ponies had an 80 percent accuracy in matching images with at least four elements in at least two training sessions. One pony could tell the difference between four and five geometric symbols.

While proving that a horse's cognitive abilities may be much higher than previously believed, these finding don't mean the pony was “counting,” the team says. True counting indicated that the individual had an idea of numerical order. The ponies were subitizing: Quickly and spontaneously adding a short number of objects. Some primates and avian species can do this.

Study: Horses Living In Herds Recover From Exercise More Rapidly

Horses tend to bounce back faster after hard work when they're turned out with buddies rather than kept in stalls.

Drs. Malin Connysson, Marie Rhodin and Anna Jansson, all with the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Uppsala, used eight Standardbred horses to determine the effects of housing on post-exercise recovery.

The horses were kept in small herds or isolated in box stalls for 21 days, then they were switched to the other housing method. On days seven and 14, they underwent an exercise test. The researchers collected blood before, during and multiple times after the exercise test.

The results showed that after exercise, horses that were stalled and alone ate less than horses living in a herd outdoors. In addition, the horse's plasma non-esterified fatty acids decreased more quickly in the horses living in a herd. These acids indicate the horse's post-exercise recovery rate.

The scientists concluded that horses living outside in groups recovered from exercise more rapidly; outdoor living also positively impacted the horse's appetite and energy levels.

Read the study here.

When Digging For A Diagnosis Becomes Harmful

Equine and pediatric medicine has many parallels, notes Dr. David Ramey in an article for Horse Network, including a propensity for overdiagnosis.

Ramey draws multiple similarities between the two, including that both horses and children are reliant upon adults to make medical decisions for them. Additionally, neither small children nor horses can talk, so diagnoses must be made on observation and testing.

Ramey says that a horse may have an issue where a diagnosis is warranted, but determining an exact diagnosis can be difficult—and in some cases harmful–to the horse. An ultrasound can be a helpful tool to use if a horse is colicking and a diagnosis on whether surgery is needed is imperative. However, sometimes a precise diagnosis isn't needed. If a horse is older and sore, using every diagnostic tool to determine where it is unsound may not change the treatment or the outcome—it simply adds to the owner's expense. In Ramey's words, “'Overdiagnosis' describes a situation when an abnormality is found, but detection of that abnormality doesn't actually benefit the patient.”

Though vets have multiple diagnostic tools at their disposal, their use doesn't always behoove the horse or the owner. Using every tool available to find a diagnosis might physically harm the horse: It's imperative that the owner and vet agree that the benefit outweighs the possible risk of the test or procedure.

Psychologically, naming the issue may change the perception of what a horse can do. Some owners then become focuses on “fixing” the problem, adding in supplements and other treatments that the horse may not need. Finally, the financial strain on owners who choose to offer treatments to horses that may not garner long-term improvement can be immense.

Ramey offers some thoughts on why veterinarians may seek to over diagnose the equines in their care:

Industry influence
Defensiveness
Incentives

Owners may attempt to seek out concrete diagnoses for their own peace of mind; uncertainty is not well tolerated by most people.

The benefit—to both horse and owner–of performing a test or procedure should be discussed before an owner agrees to pay for it. Many equine conditions improve on their own, so immediately throwing every test and procedure at the horse may result in the same diagnosis as waiting and not doing additional tests.