Effects of top-dress formulations of suxibuzone and phenylbutazone on development of gastric ulcers in horses.
Abstract: Eighteen mature, healthy horses were divided into three groups (six per group) receiving either no treatment, 15 consecutive days of phenylbutazone (PBZ), or 15 consecutive days of suxibuzone (SBZ) at recommended label doses. Horses underwent endoscopy before and after the treatment period and were assigned gastric ulcer scores. Gastric ulcer number and severity scores were similar across treatment groups. These findings suggest that when administered at the recommended label dose for 15 days, neither PBZ nor SBZ causes an increase in the number or severity of gastric ulcers over what would be expected with traditional stabling and intermittent feeding patterns. Also, PBZ-treated horses did not have more severe gastric ulcers than SBZ-treated horses, indicating that SBZ does not appear to offer an advantage over PBZ in preventing gastric ulcers when used at recommended label doses. However, ulcers in other regions of the gastrointestinal tract (e.g., right dorsal colon, duodenum) were not evaluated in horses in this study.
Publication Date: 2009-12-30 PubMed ID: 20037965
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- Controlled Clinical Trial
- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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This study demonstrates that the use of either phenylbutazone or suxibuzone, both typical horse drugs, at their prescribed doses, does not produce any significant increase in gastric ulcers in horses, in comparison to those not receiving any treatment.
Research Methodology
- The research was carried out on eighteen mature, healthy horses which were divided into three groups, each containing six horses.
- The groups received different treatments: one group was not treated, another received phenylbutazone (PBZ) for 15 consecutive days, and the third received suxibuzone (SBZ) also for 15 consecutive days – both at their recommended label doses.
- Each horse underwent endoscopy before and after the treatment period. This helped in monitoring the gastroduodenal health of the animals and detecting any changes.
- Gastric ulcer scores were assigned to the horses at the end of the experiment. This score was based on the total number of gastric ulcers and their severity.
Research Findings
- Upon comparison, the severity and number of gastric ulcers was found to be similar across all treatment groups. Hence, these drugs did not cause any appreciable increase in ulcer formation.
- The research indicates that the risk of ulcer development in horses with traditional stabling and intermittent feeding patterns is not increased when they are administered either PBZ or SBZ at the recommended label doses for 15 days.
- The research also found that there was no significant difference between the PBZ and SBZ treated horses in terms of gastric ulcer severity. This suggests that SBZ does not offer any substantial advantage over PBZ in preventing gastric ulcers when used at the prescribed doses.
Research Limitations
- Despite these findings, there are certain limitations to the study. For example, the research did not take into account ulcers in other regions of the horse’s gastrointestinal tract, such as the right dorsal colon or duodenum.
- Moreover, the research only considered healthy, mature horses. Therefore, the results may not apply to young, ill, or elderly equines.
Cite This Article
APA
Andrews FM, Reinemeyer CR, Longhofer SL.
(2009).
Effects of top-dress formulations of suxibuzone and phenylbutazone on development of gastric ulcers in horses.
Vet Ther, 10(3), 113-120.
Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Equine Health Studies Program, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA.
MeSH Terms
- Administration, Oral
- Animals
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / administration & dosage
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / adverse effects
- Chemistry, Pharmaceutical
- Female
- Horse Diseases / chemically induced
- Horse Diseases / pathology
- Horses
- Male
- Phenylbutazone / administration & dosage
- Phenylbutazone / adverse effects
- Phenylbutazone / analogs & derivatives
- Stomach / pathology
- Stomach Ulcer / chemically induced
- Stomach Ulcer / pathology
- Stomach Ulcer / veterinary
Citations
This article has been cited 4 times.- Bognanni N, Zimbone S, Giuffrida ML, Di Natale G, Milardi D, Vecchio G, Lanza V. Unveiling the Potential of a New β-Cyclodextrin-Suxibuzone Conjugate in Proteasome Regulation. ChemMedChem 2025 Nov 28;20(23):e202500401.
- Vokes J, Lovett A, Sykes B. Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome: An Update on Current Knowledge. Animals (Basel) 2023 Apr 5;13(7).
- Tesena P, Yingchutrakul Y, Roytrakul S, Wongtawan T, Angkanaporn K. Serum protein expression in Equine Glandular Gastric Disease (EGGD) induced by phenylbutazone. J Vet Med Sci 2019 Mar 20;81(3):418-424.
- Sykes BW, Hewetson M, Hepburn RJ, Luthersson N, Tamzali Y. European College of Equine Internal Medicine Consensus Statement--Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome in Adult Horses. J Vet Intern Med 2015 Sep-Oct;29(5):1288-99.
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