Analyze Diet
Animals : an open access journal from MDPI2023; 13(10); 1602; doi: 10.3390/ani13101602

Characterization of Raid Hipico Uruguayo Competencies by Ride Type: Causes of Death and Risk Factors.

Abstract: RHU is the oldest endurance sport in Uruguay. However, despite 80 years of racing, there are no studies to characterize this type of competition, explore rates and causes of death, and identify the associated risk factors. The aim was to characterize the Raid Hipico Uruguayo (RHU) competencies according to the distance (short (SR, 60 km) vs. long (LR, 80-115 km)), the causes of deaths, and the associated risk factors. The study population comprised horses ( = 16,856) that participated in RHU rides from 2007 to 2018. LR were more frequent than SR ( < 0.001). The average speed of winners was higher in SR (32.12 km/h) than in LR (28.14 km/h) ( < 0.001). There were 99 fatalities (5.9 per 1000 starts). SR had greater frequency of high comfort index (CI = Temp [°F] + Humidity [%]) than LR, and LR had greater frequency of low CI than SR ( < 0.001). The percentage of inexperienced horses and those who completed the ride was greater in SR than in LR ( < 0.001). In both types of rides, more horses died during than after the ride, and inexperienced horses were more likely to suffer fatalities than horses with prior experience in the sport ( < 0.05). SR were associated with increased risk of sudden death, while LR were associated with increased risk of death due to metabolic alterations. The high fatality index shown in this work warrants urgent investigation in this sport to minimize mortality associated with RHU-specific diseases.
Publication Date: 2023-05-10 PubMed ID: 37238032PubMed Central: PMC10215146DOI: 10.3390/ani13101602Google Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research aims to review and analyze the Raid Hipico Uruguayo (RHU), the oldest endurance horse sport in Uruguay, focusing on its organization based on ride lengths, causes of horse fatalities, and risk factors associated with them.

Study Sample

  • This study conducted a review on a vast group of 16,856 horses that participated in the RHU racing event from 2007 to 2018. This range allows researchers to analyze different rides and performance aspects across different years and seasons.

Characterization of the Races

  • As per the study, the RHU races can be divided into two categories based on their length: short rides (SR) that cover 60 km and long rides (LR) which span about 80 to 115 km.
  • The frequency of long rides was found to be higher than short rides, indicating that the sport often involves more strenuous and enduring challenges for the horses.
  • The study also highlighted that the speed of the winning horses was higher in the short rides (32.12 km/h) compared to the long rides (28.14 km/h).

Fatality Rates and Associated Risks

  • The review establishes that there were 99 fatalities across the observed period, corresponding to about 5.9 deaths per 1000 starts.
  • An interesting observation was that short-distance rides were executed under relatively challenging comfort index – a metric factoring both temperature and humidity – compared to long rides.
  • The number of inexperienced horses and the ones who managed to complete the race was more prevalent in short rides than in long rides.
  • Across both ride types, a higher percentage of horses died during the race compared to post-race. Also, inexperienced horses were found to be more vulnerable to fatalities than the experienced ones.
  • Short rides revealed a higher risk of sudden horse deaths, whereas long rides demonstrated risks of death due to metabolic alterations.

Conclusion and Recommendation

  • The research concludes by addressing the high fatality rates discovered through the study. It suggests the urgent need for further in-depth investigations to understand and curb mortality caused due to RHU-specific illnesses and conditions.

Cite This Article

APA
Brito G, Damián JP, Suárez G, Ruprechter G, Trigo P. (2023). Characterization of Raid Hipico Uruguayo Competencies by Ride Type: Causes of Death and Risk Factors. Animals (Basel), 13(10), 1602. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13101602

Publication

ISSN: 2076-2615
NlmUniqueID: 101635614
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 13
Issue: 10
PII: 1602

Researcher Affiliations

Brito, Gimena
  • Unidad de Análisis Clínicos, Imagenología y Laboratorio de Endocrinología y Metabolismo Animal, Departamento de Clinicas y Hospital Veterinario, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 13000, Uruguay.
Damián, Juan Pablo
  • Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 13000, Uruguay.
Suárez, Gonzalo
  • Unidad de Farmacología y Terapéutica, Departamento Hospital y Clínicas Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 13000, Uruguay.
Ruprechter, Gretel
  • Unidad de Análisis Clínicos, Imagenología y Laboratorio de Endocrinología y Metabolismo Animal, Departamento de Clinicas y Hospital Veterinario, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 13000, Uruguay.
Trigo, Pablo
  • IGEVET CONICET CC La Plata, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de la Plata, La Plata B1900, Argentina.

Grant Funding

  • POS_NAC_2018_1_152268) / Agencia Nacional de Investigaciu00f3n e Innovaciu00f3n

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

References

This article includes 33 references
  1. FEI Fédération Equestre Internationale. [(accessed on 10 November 2022)]. Available online: https://inside.fei.org/system/files/20.1_ANNEX%20GA19_ENDURANCE%20RULES%20MARK-UP.pdf.
  2. Muñoz A, Castejón-Riber C, Riber C, Esgueva M, Trigo P, Castejón F. Current Knowledge of Pathologic Mechanisms and Derived Practical Applications to Prevent Metabolic Disturbances and Exhaustion in the Endurance Horse. J. Equine Vet. Sci. 2017;51:24–33.
  3. FEU Federación Ecuestre Del Uruguay. [(accessed on 18 October 2022)]. Available online: http://www.federacionecuestreuruguaya.com.uy/documentacion.html.
  4. Trigo P, Castejon F, Riber C, Muñoz A. Use of biochemical parameters to predict metabolic elimination in endurance rides.. Equine Vet J Suppl 2010 Nov;(38):142-6.
  5. Marichal G, Trigo P, Soto C, Meikle A, Suárez G. Hydroelectrolytic and Acid-Base Parameters after 80 to 115 km Endurance Races (Raid Uruguayo) and Their Association with the Comfort Index.. Animals (Basel) 2023 Feb 14;13(4).
    pmc: PMC9951660pubmed: 36830457doi: 10.3390/ani13040670google scholar: lookup
  6. Lyle CH, Uzal FA, McGorum BC, Aida H, Blissitt KJ, Case JT, Charles JT, Gardner I, Horadagoda N, Kusano K, Lam K, Pack JD, Parkin TD, Slocombe RF, Stewart BD, Boden LA. Sudden death in racing Thoroughbred horses: an international multicentre study of post mortem findings.. Equine Vet J 2011 May;43(3):324-31.
  7. Lyle CH, Blissitt KJ, Kennedy RN, Mc Gorum BC, Newton JR, Parkin TD, Stirk A, Boden LA. Risk factors for race-associated sudden death in Thoroughbred racehorses in the UK (2000-2007).. Equine Vet J 2012 Jul;44(4):459-65.
  8. Estberg L, Stover SM, Gardner IA, Johnson BJ, Case JT, Ardans A, Read DH, Anderson ML, Barr BC, Daft BM, Kinde H, Moore J, Stoltz J, Woods LW. Fatal musculoskeletal injuries incurred during racing and training in thoroughbreds.. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1996 Jan 1;208(1):92-6.
    pubmed: 8682713
  9. Parkin TD, Clegg PD, French NP, Proudman CJ, Riggs CM, Singer ER, Webbon PM, Morgan KL. Risk of fatal distal limb fractures among Thoroughbreds involved in the five types of racing in the United Kingdom.. Vet Rec 2004 Apr 17;154(16):493-7.
    doi: 10.1136/vr.154.16.493pubmed: 15130054google scholar: lookup
  10. Balch O.K, Kohut N, Mero J, Elford W, Vale A. Mitigation of 100-MileRide Fatalities Associated with American Endurance Ride Conference (2002–2018). AAEP Proceedings 65st Annual Convention Denver, CO, USA. 7–11 December 2019.
  11. Jones S. Horseback Riding in the Dog Days. Anim. Sci. E-News 2009;2:3–4.
  12. RStudio Team. RStudio: Integrated Development Environment for R 2022. R Core Team R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. R Core Team; Vienna, Austria: 2022.
  13. FEI Fédération Equestre Internationale. [(accessed on 10 November 2022)]. Available online: https://inside.fei.org/sites/default/files/FEI_Endurance_Report_2019.final.pdf.
  14. Nagy A, Murray JK, Dyson SJ. Descriptive epidemiology and risk factors for eliminations from Fédération Equestre Internationale endurance rides due to lameness and metabolic reasons (2008-2011).. Equine Vet J 2014 Jan;46(1):38-44.
    doi: 10.1111/evj.12069pubmed: 23574513google scholar: lookup
  15. Foreman JH. The exhausted horse syndrome.. Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract 1998 Apr;14(1):205-19.
    doi: 10.1016/S0749-0739(17)30220-1pubmed: 9561696google scholar: lookup
  16. Flaminio MJ, Rush BR. Fluid and electrolyte balance in endurance horses.. Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract 1998 Apr;14(1):147-58.
    doi: 10.1016/S0749-0739(17)30217-1pubmed: 9561693google scholar: lookup
  17. Schott HC 2nd, Marlin DJ, Geor RJ, Holbrook TC, Deaton CM, Vincent T, Dacre K, Schroter RC, Jose-Cunilleras E, Cornelisse CJ. Changes in selected physiological and laboratory measurements in elite horses competing in a 160 km endurance ride.. Equine Vet J Suppl 2006 Aug;(36):37-42.
  18. Marlin D, Williams J. Equine endurance race pacing strategy differs between finishers and non-finishers in 120 km single-day races. Comp. Exerc. Physiol. 2018;14:11–18.
    doi: 10.3920/CEP170027google scholar: lookup
  19. Di Battista C, Conte M, Pepe M, Petrizzi L, Beccati F. Epidemiology and risk factors for eliminations from Fédération Equestre Internationale endurance rides between 2004-2015 in Italy.. Prev Vet Med 2019 Oct 1;170:104737.
  20. Legg KA, Weston JF, Gee EK, Bolwell CF, Bridges JP, Rogers CW. Characteristics of Endurance Competitions and Risk Factors for Elimination in New Zealand during Six Seasons of Competition (2010/11-2015/16).. Animals (Basel) 2019 Aug 27;9(9).
    doi: 10.3390/ani9090611pmc: PMC6770045pubmed: 31461901google scholar: lookup
  21. Nagy A, Murray JK, Dyson S. Elimination from elite endurance rides in nine countries: a preliminary study.. Equine Vet J Suppl 2010 Nov;(38):637-43.
  22. Muñoz-Alonzo L, Silva A.B, Leal J.C, Luengo M.B. Motivos de eliminación en competencias de enduro internacional, categoría jinete adulto, en Chile (2007–2014). Rev. Investig. Vet. Perú 2016;27:259–266.
  23. Bloom F, Draper S, Bennet E, Marlin D, Williams J. Risk factors for lameness elimination in British endurance riding.. Equine Vet J 2023 Jul;55(4):632-641.
    doi: 10.1111/evj.13875pubmed: 36102466google scholar: lookup
  24. Nagy A, Dyson SJ, Murray JK. A veterinary review of endurance riding as an international competitive sport.. Vet J 2012 Dec;194(3):288-93.
    doi: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2012.06.022pubmed: 22819800google scholar: lookup
  25. Nagy A, Murray JK, Dyson SJ. Horse-, rider-, venue- and environment-related risk factors for elimination from Fédération Equestre Internationale endurance rides due to lameness and metabolic reasons.. Equine Vet J 2014 May;46(3):294-9.
    doi: 10.1111/evj.12170pubmed: 24033509google scholar: lookup
  26. Lucke VM. Sudden death.. Equine Vet J 1987 Mar;19(2):85-6.
  27. de Solis CN, Althaus F, Basieux N, Burger D. Sudden death in sport and riding horses during and immediately after exercise: A case series.. Equine Vet J 2018 Sep;50(5):644-648.
    doi: 10.1111/evj.12803pubmed: 29330860google scholar: lookup
  28. Boden LA, Anderson GA, Charles JA, Morgan KL, Morton JM, Parkin TD, Slocombe RF, Clarke AF. Risk of fatality and causes of death of Thoroughbred horses associated with racing in Victoria, Australia: 1989-2004.. Equine Vet J 2006 Jul;38(4):312-8.
    doi: 10.2746/042516406777749182pubmed: 16866197google scholar: lookup
  29. Comyn I, Bathe A.P, Foote A, Marr C.M. Analysis of Sudden Death and Fatal Musculoskeletal Injury During FEI Three-Day Eventing. Equine Vet. J. 2017;49((Suppl. S51)):9.
  30. Suárez-Mier MP, Aguilera B. [Causes of sudden death during sports activities in Spain].. Rev Esp Cardiol 2002 Apr;55(4):347-58.
    doi: 10.1016/S0300-8932(02)76614-1pubmed: 11975900google scholar: lookup
  31. Misheff M.M, Alexander G.R, Hirst G.R. Management of fractures in endurance horses. Equine Vet. Educ. 2010;22:623–630.
  32. Rosanowski SM, Chang YM, Stirk AJ, Verheyen KLP. Risk factors for race-day fatality in flat racing Thoroughbreds in Great Britain (2000 to 2013).. PLoS One 2018;13(3):e0194299.
  33. Georgopoulos SP, Parkin TD. Risk factors associated with fatal injuries in Thoroughbred racehorses competing in flat racing in the United States and Canada.. J Am Vet Med Assoc 2016 Oct 15;249(8):931-939.
    doi: 10.2460/javma.249.8.931pubmed: 27700272google scholar: lookup

Citations

This article has been cited 0 times.