The topic of drugs and horses encompasses the study of various pharmacological agents used in equine medicine for therapeutic purposes. This includes the administration of medications for pain management, disease treatment, and performance enhancement. The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs in horses are key areas of research, as they determine the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of these substances. Additionally, the topic covers the detection and regulation of substances in competitive equestrian sports to ensure fair play and animal welfare. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the effects, safety, and regulatory aspects of drug use in equine health and performance.
Brown MP, Stover SM, Kelly RH, Farver TB.Six adult mares were given a single dose of ampicillin trihydrate (250 mg/ml) intramuscularly at a dosage of 20 mg/kg body weight. Serum, synovial fluid, peritoneal fluid and urine ampicillin concentrations were measured serially over a 48 h period. The mean peak serum ampicillin concentration was 2.49 micrograms/ml at 6 h. Ampicillin was found in synovial fluid and peritoneal fluid, which obtained mean peak ampicillin concentrations of 1.65 micrograms/ml and 1.81 micrograms/ml at 6 h and 4 h respectively. These concentrations declined in parallel with serum concentrations and were still detec...
Combie J, Blake JW, Nugent TE, Tobin T.We have investigated the action of five sources of beta-glucuronidase enzymes on the hydrolysis of glucuronides of apomorphine, butorphanol, hydromorphone, nalbuphine, oxymorphone and pentazocine in equine urine. For all glucuronides tested, Patella vulgata beta-glucuronidase yielded the largest thin layer chromatographic (TLC) spots. For oxymorphone, P. vulgata was the only treatment to yield detectable TLC spots under test parameters. For these six drugs, TLC spot size and chromatographic quality were compared between control horses and horses pretreated with furosemide four hours earlier. F...
Larson VL, Stowe CM.Oxytetracycline (OTC) was administered IV to 3 clinically normal horses at a dosage of 10 mg of OTC/kg of body weight. Plasma OTC concentrations were determined at 30-minute intervals until postinjection minute (PIM) 240. At PIM 240, the mean OTC concentration in pulmonary tissue was 3.96 microgram/g of tissue (wet weight) and in renal tissue was 25.47 micrograms/g. diluted bronchial fluid had a mean concentration of 0.288 microgram of OTC/ml at PIM 240. The data demonstrated that OTC has adequate tissue distribution in horses.
Baggot JD, Love DN, Rose RJ, Raus J.The disposition kinetics and bioavailability of streptomycin, kanamycin and neomycin were determined following their administration as parenteral preparations to horses. Single doses (10 mg/kg) of each aminoglycoside were given by the intravenous (i.v.) and intramuscular (i.m.) routes and, at a later time, seven intramuscular doses were injected at 12-h intervals. The pharmacokinetic behaviour of the three aminoglycosides was similar, in that a rapid distribution phase was followed by a relatively short half-life. The half-life (mean +/- SD, n = 6) of kanamycin (1.80 +/- 0.17 h) was significan...
Igwe OJ, Blake JW.An analytical gas/liquid chromatographic (GLC) protocol is described for the quantitation of pemoline in biological fluids of the horse. Plasma samples containing known quantities of pemoline and its analog as an internal standard (IS) were deproteinized with 5-sulfosalicylic acid, heated at 80 degree C, and centrifuged. 5-Phenyl-2,4-oxazolidinedione, the hydrolytic product of pemoline in acid medium, was extracted with dichloromethane (DCM). The organic layer was in turn re-extracted with 1% NaHCO3. The aqueous layer was acidified with HCI, and re-extracted with DCM, which was evaporated to d...
Sigel CW, Byars TD, Divers TJ, Murch O, DeAngelis D.Two fasted and 2 fed horses were dosed orally with a combined trimethoprim and sulfadiazine paste formulation at a dose of 35 mg (1:5 combined active ingredients)/kg. Serum concentrations of each drug were determined periodically for 3 consecutive days for the 4 horses. The extent and rate of absorption for trimethoprim were variable, but peak serum concentrations occurred generally within 3 hours; sulfadiazine absorption was slower, reaching peak concentrations by 6 hours. Fasting did not have a consistent effect on the serum concentration profiles for either drug. Both drugs achieved serum c...
Houghton E, Dumasia MC, Wellby JK.Negative ion chemical ionization mass spectra of some corticosteroids have been obtained by direct syringe introduction on to the Finnigan moving belt high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometer interface. Proprietary preparations based upon dexamethasone, betamethasone and prednisolone were administered to horses at therapeutic dose level. Urine samples were extracted, the extracts purified by Sephadex LH-20 chromatography and the presence of the parent steroids in the eluates was confirmed by combined high-performance liquid chromatography negative ion chemical ionization mass s...
Kingsbury PA, Reid JF.Oxfendazole was administered in paste or drench formulations to groups of five horses carrying naturally acquired worm burdens. At a dose rate of 10 mg/kg the efficacy of either formulation appeared similar. One hundred per cent of the adult populations of the following genera was removed: Parascaris, Oxyuris, Strongylus (S edentatus, S vulgaris), Triodontophorus and Trichostrongylus axei. Efficacy against adult small strongyles, adult Habronema microstoma and immature Oxyuris equi was in the region of 96 to 99 per cent. The level of efficacy against immature small strongyles was at least 74 t...
Brown MP, Stover SM, Kelly RH, Farver TB.Six healthy adult mares were given a single dose of kanamycin sulfate (200 mg/ml) IM at a dosage rate of 5 mg/kg of body weight. Kanamycin concentrations in serum, synovial fluid, peritoneal fluid, and urine were measured serially over a 48-hour period. The mean peak serum kanamycin concentration was 12.55 microgram/ml at 1 hour. Mean peak kanamycin concentrations in synovial fluid and peritoneal fluid were 7.25 microgram/ml and 9.27 microgram/ml at 2 hours and 3 hours, respectively. These concentrations decreased steadily in parallel with serum concentrations and were still measurable at 48 h...
Doyle A, Owen LN.Sixteen cytotoxic drugs used in cancer chemotherapy in man were studied for cytopathic effect on equine fibrosarcoma, melanoma and normal equine lung cells in vitro. Three drugs, vincristine, melphalan and methotrexate, produced cytopathic effect
Thomson JR, McPherson EA.When stabled in a controlled environment, horses effected with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) became clinically asymptomatic in 4 to 32 days (mean [+/-sd] 9.1 +/- 4.9 days), the time being influenced most by the severity of the disease judged on maximum intrathoracic pressure change (Max delta Ppl) and the age of the animal. Sodium cromoglycate, a drug widely used for prophylaxis of allergic respiratory disease in man, was administered by inhalation to 56 COPD-affected horses. The results showed that a linear response existed between the number of successive days treatment with t...
Stover SM, Brown MP, Kelly RH, Farver TB.Six healthy adult mares were given a single dose (25 mg/kg of body weight) of sodium oxacillin IM. Oxacillin concentrations in serum, synovial fluid, peritoneal fluid, and urine were measured serially over a 48-hour period. The mean peak serum oxacillin concentration was 9.75 microgram/ml at 0.5 hour after injection. Mean peak oxacillin concentrations in synovial and peritoneal fluids were 1.45 microgram/ml and 2.60 microgram/ml at 1 hour and 2 hours, respectively. These concentrations decreased in parallel with serum values and were not measurable at 48 hours. Urine concentrations of oxacilli...
Combie J, Blake JW, Ramey BE, Tobin T.Morphine was detected in equine biological fluids by a combination of liquid-liquid extraction and column chromatography, followed by derivatization and gas-liquid chromatographic assay, using electron capture detector. Recovery of morphine from the equine biological samples was poor. However, despite an overall recovery of less than 20%, this method had a detection limit of 0.2 ng/ml. Addition of 5,000 U of bovine liver beta-glucuronidase/ml of urine enabled detection of the drug in urine for up to 144 hours after horses were given 0.1 mg of morphine/kg of body weight. Morphine was found for ...
Pedersoli WM, Ravis WR, Belmonte AA, McCullers RM.Digoxin (elixir, 0.022 mg/kg) was administered via stomach tube to healthy horses of mixed breeding and sexes. Serum digoxin concentrations reached a peak (2.21 +/- 0.6 ng/ml) at approximately 1 hour after dosing and had a half-life of 28.8 +/- 10.7 hours. Digoxin kinetics followed a triexponential curve, indicating that at least a 2 compartmental model is required to characterize the serum concentration-time curve after this route of administration. It was calculated that to achieve average serum concentrations of 1.1 ng/ml, an oral dose of 17.4 microgram of digoxin elixir/kg/day and an IV do...
Gerring EL, Lees P, Taylor JB.Phenylbutazone was given orally to 2 groups of horses and the plasma levels of the drug and its 2 principal metabolites oxyphenbutazone and gamma-hydroxyphenylbutazone measured by high performance liquid chromatography. Animals in Group 1 received single oral doses in a range from 1.1 to 13.2 mg/kg and were sampled over the succeeding 24 h. Considerable individual variation was observed both in timing and magnitude of the plasma drug responses between horses, but 24 h after dosing a clear dose response relation was recorded. Group 2 horses were given the recommended therapeutic dosage regimen ...
Rose RJ, Hartley WJ, Baker W.Bilateral laryngeal paralysis is described in 5 Arabian and part-Arabian foals aged between 23 and 35 days. Tracheotomies resulted in complete relief of dyspnoea. Two cases showed recovery of abductor function of the right arytenoid cartilage after 3 weeks and one of these cases later recovered left abductor function. Four of the foals were autopsied at various times from one week to 6 months after the onset of respiratory obstruction. Histology of the recurrent laryngeal nerves showed active Wallerian degeneration and loss of nerve fibres in many fascicles in cases affected for one to 2 weeks...
Hall LW, Taylor PM.One hundred anaesthetics were administered in a clinical trial to 95 equine patients, ranging in age from nine months to 19 years and in weight from 140 to 1270 kg, undergoing a variety of surgical procedures. Acepromazine maleate premedication (0.01 to 0.03 mg per kg intramuscularly) was given to seven animals, the remainder were not premedicated. Xylazine (1.1 mg per kg) was injected intravenously over a two minute period and after a pause of two minutes ketamine (2.2 mg per kg) was injected rapidly by the same route. For 30 procedures no other anaesthetic was given but in 59 cases anaesthes...
Lyons ET, Drudge JH, Tolliver SC.Critical tests were conducted in 14 naturally infected equids (13 horses and 1 pony) to evaluate the antiparasitic activity of haloxon. Single doses were administered by stomach tube to 3 horses and 1 pony (60 mg/kg of body weight), by addition to the feed of 3 horses (60 mg/kg), and intraorally by powder gun to 7 horses (65 mg/kg). Haloxon was efficacious (99% to 100%) against infections of Parascaris equorum, Oxyuris equi (mature and immature), and Strongylus vulgaris at both dosage levels. Probstmayria vivipara parasites were removed in 1 horse treated at 60 mg/kg by stomach tube and S equi...
McGuirk SM, Muir WW, Sams RA.A pharmacokinetic study was made, using 7 healthy adult horses (weighing between 400 and 560 kg) given quinidine gluconate IV and quinidine sulfate orally. The apparent volume of distribution of quinidine base was 3.10 +/- 0.79 L/kg, total body clearance was 5.49 +/- 2.40 ml/minute/kg, and plasma half-life was 6.65 +/- 3.00 hours. The systemic availability of quinidine sulfate after oral administration of a 10 mg/kg dose was 48.5 +/- 20.4%. Oral administrations of quinidine sulfate in doses of 10 mg/kg and 10 g produced peak plasma concentrations of 0.79 microgram/ml at 146 minutes and 1.47 mi...
Lyons ET, Drudge JH, Tolliver SC.Antiparasitic activity of a micronized formulation of the benzothiazole compound, tioxidazole, at the dose rate of 11 mg/kg, was evaluated by the critical test method. Drug was given by stomach to 3 horses and on feed to 3 horses. Excellent removal activity was found for Strongylus vulgaris (100%) in 5 naturally infected horses, S edentatus (91% to 100%) in 5 horses, small strongyles (88% to 99%) in 6 horses, immature Oxyuris equi (100%) in 5 horses, and Parascaris equorum (100%) in 5 horses (a 6th horse had 10 small specimens present at necropsy). There was no measurable activity against bots...
Snow DH, Baxter P, Whiting B.The pharmacokinetics of meclofenamic acid were studied in Thoroughbred horses and in ponies. After intravenous (i.v.) administration of either 2 mg/kg or 4 mg/kg sodium meclofenamate the elimination half-life was of the order of 0.9 h while the volume of distribution was found to be 0.128 litre/kg. Elimination was in accordance with a one-compartment model. Following oral administration of either meclofenamic acid (4 mg/kg) or sodium meclofenamate (4 mg/kg) a much longer terminal half-life than that calculated for Kel from i.v. data was found. This anomaly indicated that the 'flip-flop' phenom...
Chuang MS, Huang HH, Dixon KM, Chen KS, Mao CL, Chen CL.The pharmacokinetics of clenbuterol in equine urine and blood was investigated. Methods: Urine and blood samples were collected following 3-day multiple oral administrations. The samples were examined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and further confirmed by solid phase extraction and capillary electrophoresis. Results: Urinary clenbuterol was detectable until day 14 after the last dose. The urinary excretion of clenbuterol was characterized by a biphasic pattern. The half-lives of the bi-exponential elimination (t(1/2alpha) and t(1/2beta)) for urinary clenbuterol were about 12.1 and 48...
Knych HK, Arthur RM, McKemie DS, Chapman N.Flunixin meglumine is commonly used in horses for the treatment of musculoskeletal injuries. The current ARCI threshold recommendation is 20 ng/mL when administered at least 24 h prior to race time. In light of samples exceeding the regulatory threshold at 24 h postadministration, the primary goal of the study reported here was to update the pharmacokinetics of flunixin following intravenous administration, utilizing a highly sensitive liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). An additional objective was to characterize the effects of flunixin on COX-1 and COX-2 inhibition when drug con...
Stanley S, Jeganathan A, Wood T, Henry P, Turner S, Woods WE, Green M, Tai HH, Watt D, Blake J.We have raised antibodies to morphine and etorphine and developed one-step enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) for these drugs as part of a panel of post race tests for drugs in racing horses. These tests are simple, can be completed in 2 h, and can be read by visual inspection. The morphine ELISA has an I50 for morphine of about 1.5 ng/mL, while the etorphine ELISA has an I50 for etorphine of 250 pg/mL. Cross-reactivity studies show that the antimorphine antibody cross-reacts well with levorphanol, hydromorphone, and oxycodone, while the anti-etorphine antibody showed no cross-reactivi...
Levionnois OL, Mevissen M, Thormann W, Spadavecchia C.The objective of this study was to assess a pharmacokinetic algorithm to predict ketamine plasma concentration and drive a target-controlled infusion (TCI) in ponies. Firstly, the algorithm was used to simulate the course of ketamine enantiomers plasma concentrations after the administration of an intravenous bolus in six ponies based on individual pharmacokinetic parameters obtained from a previous experiment. Using the same pharmacokinetic parameters, a TCI of S-ketamine was then performed over 120 min to maintain a concentration of 1 microg/mL in plasma. The actual plasma concentrations of ...
Houck EL, Papich MG, Delk KW.Southern white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum simum) frequently develop painful conditions, such as traumatic injuries or osteoarthritis, necessitating the administration of pain-relieving medications. One of the preferred treatments is the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug phenylbutazone because of the availability of oral formulations and the familiarity of its use in horses. For the main study, a single oral dose of phenylbutazone at 2 mg/kg was administered to healthy adult rhinoceros (n = 33) housed at six North American zoological institutions. Each rhinoceros had up to four blood ...
Ball MA, Rebhun WC, Trepanier L, Gaarder J, Schwark WS.The objectives of this study were to determine the concentration of itraconazole achieved in corneal tissue and aqueous humour after topical application of a 1% itraconazole ointment: to determine the effect of including dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) in the ointment on achievable ocular tissue itraconazole concentrations; and to assess if any gross or histopathologic ocular toxicity results from the topical application of 1% itraconazole with or without the addition of DMSO. The experimental trial consisted of 6 horses considered to have normal eyes. Each horse had one eye treated with 0.3 mL of ...
Decloedt A, Bailly-Chouriberry L, Vanden Bussche J, Garcia P, Popot MA, Bonnaire Y, Vanhaecke L.Doping control is a main priority for regulatory bodies of both the horse racing industry and the equestrian sports. Urine and blood samples are screened for the presence of hundreds of forbidden substances including anabolic-androgenic steroids (AASs). Based on the suspected endogenous origin of some AASs, with β-boldenone as the most illicit candidate, this study aimed to improve the knowledge of the naturally present AAS in horse urine. To this extent, a novel ultra high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated according to...
Hagedorn HW, Meiser H, Zankl H, Schulz R.Due to its tranquilizing properties, the tricyclic antidepressant doxepin may be misused as a doping agent in competition horses. Therefore, efficient analytical procedures are required to detect this drug in samples submitted for doping control. To screen for parent doxepin in equine blood and urine, a less specific method has been accepted employing gas chromatography (GC) combined with electron impact (EI) mass spectrometry (MS). The aim of this study was identification of doxepin metabolites providing more specific MS data to verify positives resulting from screening. Thus, after a horse w...
Lyons ET, Drudge JH, Tolliver SC.The efficacy of 2 injectable formulations of ivermectin, administered intraorally at the dosage of 200 micrograms/kg of body weight, was evaluated against naturally occurring infections by abomasal nematodes in lambs in 2 controlled tests. One test (A) included 17 lambs treated with the equine formulation and 16 nontreated lambs. For the other test (B), 14 lambs were treated with the bovine formulation, and 12 were nontreated. In controlled test A, only mature nematodes were recovered, and removals were 98% to 100% for Haemonchus contortus, Ostertagia circumcincta male, O trifurcata male, Oste...
Ho EN, Kwok WH, Leung DK, Wan TS, Wong AS.Turinabol (4-chloro-17alpha-methyl-17beta-hydroxy-1,4-androstadien-3-one) is a synthetic oral anabolic androgenic steroid. As in the case of other anabolic steroids, it is a prohibited substance in equine sports. The metabolism of turinabol in human has been reported previously; however, little is known about its metabolic fate in horses. This paper describes the studies of both the in vitro and in vivo metabolism of turinabol in racehorses with an objective to identify the most appropriate target metabolites for detecting turinabol administration. For the in vitro studies, turinabol was incub...
Yang JM, Woods WE, Weckman TJ, Wood TW, Chang SL, Blake JW, Tobin T.1. Drug administration studies using diisopropylamine dichloroacetate (DADA) and diisopropylamine (DIPA) were conducted in Thoroughbred and Standardbred horses to assess physiological effects and develop detection methods. 2. Four horses received 0.08 mg DADA/kg body wt and showed no changes in heart and respiratory rates or body temperature as measured over a 1-hr period after administration. A transient diuretic effect was found to occur in 2 mares dosed with 0.80 mg DADA/kg body wt. 3. A qualitative detection method using thin-layer chromatography was developed to detect DIPA, the major met...
Aguilera-Tejero E, Pascoe JR, Smith BL, Woliner MJ.To investigate the influence of increased respiratory frequency on respiratory mechanics in the horse, measurements were made in two groups of seven tracheostomized horses before and after the administration of doxapram. The horses in group I had normal base line values for respiratory mechanics, whereas the horses in group II had significantly lower values of dynamic compliance (Cdyn), higher respiratory resistance (R), and a higher total change in pleural pressure (delta P). The administration of 0.3 mg kg-1 doxapram intravenously resulted in a significant increase in respiratory frequency (...
Castro-Cuellar G, Cremer J, Liu CC, Queiroz-Williams P, Hampton C, Leise BS.To investigate the cytotoxic effects of 2 different concentrations of buprenorphine and compare them with bupivacaine and morphine on healthy equine chondrocytes in vitro. Methods: Primary cultured equine articular chondrocytes from 3 healthy adult horses. Methods: Chondrocytes were exposed for 0 and 2 hours to the following treatments: media (CON; negative control); bupivacaine at 2.2 mg/mL (BUPI; positive control); morphine at 2.85 mg/mL (MOR); buprenorphine at 0.12 mg/mL (HBUPRE); or buprenorphine at 0.05 mg/mL (LBUPRE). Chondrocyte viability was assessed using live/dead staining, water-sol...
Goetz TE, Munsiff IJ, McKiernan BC.The pharmacokinetic disposition of theophylline was determined by high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of plasma samples from six healthy, adult horses following the administration of intravenous aminophylline (dosed at 9.94 mg/kg as theophylline), immediate-release aminophylline tablets (dosed at 9.94 mg/kg as theophylline), and sustained-release theophylline tablets (dosed at 20 mg/kg). The elimination rate constant (lambda z), apparent volume of distribution (Vz), and clearance (Cl) determined by compartmental analysis of the intravenous data were 0.07 +/- 0.01 h-1, 0.80 +/- 0.0...
Martins FC, Keating SC, Clark-Price SC, Schaeffer DJ, Lascola KM, DiMaio Knych H.To determine the physiologic and behavioral effects and pharmacokinetic profile of hydromorphone administered intravenously (IV) to horses. Methods: Prospective, randomized, crossover study. Methods: A group of six adult healthy horses weighing 585.2 ± 58.7 kg. Methods: Each horse was administered IV hydromorphone (0.025 mg kg; treatment H0.025), hydromorphone (0.05 mg kg; treatment H0.05) or 0.9% saline in random order with a 7 day washout period. For each treatment, physiologic, hematologic, abdominal borborygmi scores and behavioral data were recorded over 5 hours and fecal output was tota...
Moeller BC, Clifford A, Emery RT, Alarcio G, Favro G, Arthur RM.Zilpaterol is a β -adrenergic agonist and a repartitioning agent that has a high potential for abuse in equine performance athletes. Analysis of zilpaterol in hair is an alternative sampling matrix that extends detection time periods beyond those found in urine or blood samples. Our laboratory has been screening for zilpaterol in hair for many years and recently detected and confirmed its presence in official samples. Accordingly, a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method was developed and validated to detect and confirm zilpaterol in equine hair. Briefly, equine hair was decontaminate...
Boyce M, Malone ED, Anderson LB, Park S, Godden SM, Jenner F, Trumble TN.To determine whether triamcinolone acetonide diffuses from the distal interphalangeal joint (DIPJ) to the navicular bursa, diffusion is direct or systemic, and addition of sodium hyaluronan has an effect on diffusion in horses. Methods: 11 adult horses without forelimb lameness. Methods: 1 randomly chosen forelimb DIPJ of each horse received an injection of 10 mg of triamcinolone acetonide plus 20 mg of sodium hyaluronan (group 1), and the contralateral forelimb DIPJ received an injection of 10 mg of triamcinolone acetonide plus 2 mL of lactated Ringer's solution (group 2). Synovial fluid samp...
Lyons ET, Tolliver SC, Drudge JH, Swerczek TW.Oxfendazole paste formulation was administered intraorally at a dosage of 10 mg/kg of body weight, twice (48 hours between treatments) in 5 controlled tests (experiments A, B, C, D, and E) to 18 equids (14 horses and 4 ponies) that were 5 to 24 months old in 1986 and 1987. Activity was evaluated against naturally acquired infections of various internal parasites, with emphasis on migratory stages of Strongylus vulgaris and S edentatus. The number of treated and nontreated equids in each experiment (horses in experiments A to D and ponies in experiment E) was: A, 1 and 1; B, 3 and 3; C, 3 and 1...
el-Banna HA.The pharmacokinetic aspects of sulphadimidine were studied in clinically healthy (control) and Flunixin-medicated horses after a single intravenous and oral administration of 100 mg/kg body weight. Plasma sulphadimidine concentration were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Following the intravenous injection, all plasma sulphadimidine data were best approximated by a two-compartment open model using sequential, weight non-linear regression. Flunixin induced a 67% increase in the rate of sulphadimidine return to the central compartment from peripheral tissues (K21) and...
Garbís SD, Hanley L, Kalita S.Thiazide-based diuretics are included in the list of banned drugs in the horse-racing industry. One effect of their misuse is increased urine flow, contributing to dilution of other doping agents. Their determination is essential in ensuring compliance to horse-racing regulation. This study evaluates the feasibility of using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) with electrospray and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization interfaces to analyze thiazidic diuretics in equine urine samples. Existing LC and gas chromatography/MS methods are limited in their applicability to thiazide an...
Reinemeyer CR, Hutchens DE, Eckblad WP, Marchiondo AA, Shugart JI.Dose confirmation studies of the cestocidal activity of pyrantel pamoate paste were conducted at two sites in North America during 2001. Horses with naturally-acquired cestode infections were identified by detection of typical Anoplocephala spp. eggs in feces collected between 7 and 92 days prior to treatment. Twenty and 22 horses were enrolled at Site 1 (Urbana, IL) and Site 2 (Knoxville, TN), respectively. Candidate horses were acclimated to study conditions for 14 days, ranked by length of interval since coprologic confirmation, and allocated randomly to one of two treatment groups: (T1) py...
Duvivier DH, Chiap P, Crommen J, Lekeux P.The aim of this study was to determine the effect of breathing pattern, air humidity and position of the device on the delivery of an aerosol generated by a dry powder inhalation (DPI) device (Inhalator M). The in vitro inhalation study was performed using the cascade impaction method (Andersen Sampler) adapted to imitate nasal breathing. The amount of ipratropium found in the device, the artificial upper airways and the six stages of the Andersen Sampler was measured using high precision liquid chromatography. Stage 1 of the Andersen Sampler was considered to be the respirable fraction and st...
Fey K, Klatt P, Schmidt H, Sasse HH.Five healthy horses were given a sulfadoxine/trimethoprim combination (Borgal, Hoechst AG) i.v. on day 1. The next ten days the horses got once a day a sulfadimethoxine/trimethoprim combination orally (Trafigal, Hoechst AG). The doses were given as recommended. One horse received no medicaments for control. On each horse six bronchoalveolar lavages were performed. Blood samples were taken to calculate blood levels and elimination half lives. To determine the amount of substances in lavage fluid and plasma the high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used. Regularly low quantities of s...
Schwarzwald CC, Sams RA, Bonagura JD.The pharmacokinetics of diltiazem were determined in eight healthy horses. Diltiazem HCl, 1 mg/kg i.v., was administered over 5 min. Venous blood samples were collected at regular intervals after administration. Plasma concentrations of diltiazem and desacetyldiltiazem were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. A second, putative metabolite was detected, but could not be identified due to the lack of an authentic standard. Data were analyzed by nonlinear least-squares regression analysis. The median (minimum-maximum) peak plasma concentration of diltiazem was 727 (539-976) ng/m...
Horspool LJ, McKellar QA.The present study was designed to determine and compare the plasma disposition and pharmacokinetics of penicillin G sodium following intravenous (i.v.) administration to horses, ponies and donkeys. The plasma disposition and pharmacokinetics of penicillin G was similar in horses, ponies and donkeys (elimination half-lives--39.0, 27.3 and 31.5 min, respectively) and a dosage interval of 6-8 h would be suitable to treat infections caused by susceptible bacteria. Although penicillin G was absorbed rapidly following nasogastric administration, the systemic availability was low (0.12-0.34%), theref...
Harkins JD, Tobin T.Fentanyl and other opioid drugs have their effect in the central nervous system; however, activity at peripheral sites has also been demonstrated. Pain-suppression activity at peripheral sites raises the possibility of skilled individuals producing local anaesthetic effects with small doses of opioid drugs that would be difficult to detect forensically and could be used to affect the outcome of a race. Therefore, the local pain-suppression effect (peripheral nerve inhibition) of fentanyl was tested using an abaxial sesamoid block/hoof withdrawal model. With this model, fentanyl did not produce...
Lees P, Taylor JB, Higgins AJ, Sedgwick AD.In vitro and in vivo studies of phenylbutazone binding to equine ingesta and digesta were undertaken. In vitro binding to chopped hay and powdered pony nuts in buffer solutions at 37 degrees C was found to be time-, concentration- and pH-dependent. Percentage binding generally increased with time, decreased with concentration and varied with buffer pH in an unpredictable manner. Other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) also bound to hay, the degree of binding being less for meclofenamate and least for flunixin in comparison with phenylbutazone. Phenylbutazone became bound to digest...
Roger T, Bardon T, Ruckebusch Y.The electrical and mechanical activity of the large intestine and its response to administration of opiate mu and kappa agonists were assessed from electrodes and inductograph coils chronically implanted on the cecocolic segment in six ponies given a diet of hay and concentrates. Before the drugs were given, migrating complexes propagating from the cecum into the colon occurred at the rate of 1.5 to 16/hour. During this propulsive activity, the cecocolic sphincter opened and closed allowing the outflow of cecal contents and preventing the backflow of colic contents. Each pony was used as its o...
Qualls HJ, Holbrook TC, Gilliam LL, Njaa BL, Panciera RJ, Pope CN, Payton ME.The efficacy of orally administered therapeutics for the treatment of cantharidin intoxication has not been evaluated in controlled studies. Objective: To develop a model of acute cantharidin intoxication in laboratory rats and to evaluate in this model the relative efficacy of 3 gastrointestinal therapies used to treat equine cantharidin toxicosis. Methods: Sixty-four male Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods: A blinded, randomized, controlled study was performed on rats surgically implanted with telemetry transmitters for evaluating heart rate, locomotor activity, and body temperature. Orogastric ad...
McElligott EM, Sommardahl CS, Cox SK.OBJECTIVE To determine the pharmacokinetics of chloramphenicol base after PO administration at a dose of SO mg/kg (22.7 mg/lb) in adult horses from which food was not withheld. DESIGN Prospective crossover study. ANIMALS 5 adult mares. PROCEDURES Chloramphenicol base (SO mg/kg) was administered PO to each horse, and blood samples were collected prior to administration (0 minutes) and at 5, 10, 15, and 30 minutes and 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 hours thereafter. Following a washout period, chloramphenicol sodium succinate (25 mg/kg [11.4 mg/lb]) was administered IV to each horse, and blood samples were ...