Omneity® Pellets
All-In-One Vitamin & Mineral Pellet
Risk factors for atrial fibrillation during racing in slow-finishing horses.
Abstract: To determine prevalence of atrial fibrillation (AF) immediately after racing among racehorses that finished well behind the winners and examine potential risk factors for AF in these horses. Methods: Case-control study. Methods: 39,302 racehorses representing 404,090 race starts in races sanctioned by the Japan Racing Association between 1988 and 1997. Methods: Horses that finished > or = 4 (turf races) or 5 (dirt races) seconds behind the winner or that did not complete the race were examined for AF within 5 minutes after the race. Logistic regression and chi2 analyses were used to determine whether sex, age, race distance, race surface, year, or development of epistaxis was associated with development of AF. Results: Estimated minimum frequency of AF was 0.03% (123 instances of AF following 404,090 race starts), and estimated minimum prevalence of AF among racehorses was 0.29% (115 horses with AF among 39,302 racehorses). Estimated frequency of AF among horses that finished slowly or did not finish was 1.39% (120 instances of AF among 8,639 examinations), and estimated prevalence of AF in horses that finished slowly was 1.23% (92 instances of AF among 7,500 horses) or 1.01% when only the first time a horse finished slowly was considered (76 instances of AF among 7,500 horses). Atrial fibrillation was paroxysmal in most horses. Among horses that finished slowly, 4-year-old and older horses and horses that raced on turf were more likely to develop AF. Conclusions: Results suggest that the likelihood of AF among racehorses that finish slowly is related to age and racing surface.
Publication Date: 2003-07-04 PubMed ID: 12839069DOI: 10.2460/javma.2003.223.84Google 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
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
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.
This research explored the prevalence of atrial fibrillation (AF) among racehorses who significantly lagged behind the winners, along with potential risk factors of AF in these horses. The study found that the chances of AF in the racehorses that finish slowly might be associated with factors like the horse’s age and the surface of the racing track.
Study Participants and Methodology
- Researchers conducted a case-control study involving 39,302 racehorses participating in 404,090 race starts at events overseen by the Japan Racing Association from 1988 to 1997.
- Any horse which ended up lagging by at least four seconds (in turf races) or five seconds (in dirt races) behind the winner, or didn’t complete the race, were examined for AF within five minutes of the race.
- Potential associations of the following factors with AF risk were analysed: horse’s sex, age, the distance of the race, the type of racing surface, year, or whether the horse developed nosebleed (epistaxis). Tools like logistic regression and chi-square analyses were used for this purpose.
Findings
- The minimum estimated occurrence of AF after racing was 0.03%, accounted to 123 cases out of 404,090 race starts. Among all the participating horses, the minimum estimated prevalence of AF was 0.29%.
- Instances of AF were greater among horses that completed the race slowly or didn’t finish. In these cases, the frequency of AF was 1.39%, and the occurrence of AF was 1.23%. The AF rate remained at 1.01% when accounting for instances where a horse performed poorly for the first time.
- In most cases, the detected AF was paroxysmal (sudden and brief).
- Among horses that finished slowly, those that were four years old or more, and those that raced on turf, seemed more prone to AF.
Conclusion
- The research suggests that racehorses that finish races slowly have a higher likelihood of experiencing AF. The risk of development of AF in these horses appears to be related to their age and the surface they raced on.
Cite This Article
APA
Ohmura H, Hiraga A, Takahashi T, Kai M, Jones JH.
(2003).
Risk factors for atrial fibrillation during racing in slow-finishing horses.
J Am Vet Med Assoc, 223(1), 84-88.
https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.2003.223.84 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Equine Science Division, Hidaka Training and Research Center of the Japan Racing Association, 535-13 Aza-Nishicha, Urakawa-cho, Urakawa-gun, Hokkaido 057-0171 Japan.
MeSH Terms
- Age Factors
- Animals
- Atrial Fibrillation / epidemiology
- Atrial Fibrillation / etiology
- Atrial Fibrillation / veterinary
- Case-Control Studies
- Female
- Floors and Floorcoverings
- Horse Diseases / epidemiology
- Horse Diseases / etiology
- Horses
- Japan / epidemiology
- Male
- Physical Conditioning, Animal / physiology
- Risk Factors
- Running
Citations
This article has been cited 14 times.- Nissen SD, Bastrup JA, Haugaard SL, Marion-Knudsen R, Schneider M, Kjeldsen ST, Carstensen H, Hopster-Iversen C, Nattel S, Jepps TA, Buhl R. Horse model of spontaneous atrial fibrillation share proteomic changes with humans. Sci Rep 2025 Aug 28;15(1):31694.
- Kuroda T, Minamijima Y, Kinman CK, Takahashi Y, Ebisuda Y, Inoue K, Ishikawa H, Mita H, Tamura N, Nukada T, Toutain PL, Ohta M. Rational quinidine dosage regimen for atrial fibrillation in Thoroughbred racehorses based on population pharmacokinetics. Front Vet Sci 2024;11:1454342.
- Tranquille CA, Chojnacka K, Murray RC. Musculoskeletal Injury and Illness Patterns in British Eventing Horses: A Descriptive Study. Animals (Basel) 2024 Sep 13;14(18).
- Kjeldsen ST, Nissen SD, Christensen NC, Haugaard SL, Schneider MJ, Vinther Z, Sattler SM, Carstensen H, Jøns C, Hopster-Iversen C, Buhl R. Validation and clinical application of implantable loop recorders for diagnosis of atrial fibrillation in horses. Equine Vet J 2025 Mar;57(2):449-458.
- Nath LC, Saljic A, Buhl R, Elliott A, La Gerche A, Ye C, Schmidt Royal H, Lundgren Virklund K, Agbaedeng TA, Stent A, Franklin S. Histological evaluation of cardiac remodelling in equine athletes. Sci Rep 2024 Jul 19;14(1):16709.
- Nath LC, Elliott A, La Gerche A, Weir J, Forbes G, Thomas G, Franklin S. Associations between postrace atrial fibrillation and measures of performance, racing history and airway disease in horses. J Vet Intern Med 2023 Nov-Dec;37(6):2573-2583.
- White R, Nath L, Hebart M, Franklin S. Assessment of P Wave Indices in Healthy Standardbred Horses. Animals (Basel) 2023 Mar 16;13(6).
- Huang YH, Alexeenko V, Tse G, Huang CL, Marr CM, Jeevaratnam K. ECG Restitution Analysis and Machine Learning to Detect Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation: Insight from the Equine Athlete as a Model for Human Athletes. Function (Oxf) 2021;2(1):zqaa031.
- Kjeldsen ST, Nissen SD, Buhl R, Hopster-Iversen C. Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation in Horses: Pathophysiology, Diagnostics and Clinical Aspects. Animals (Basel) 2022 Mar 10;12(6).
- Ter Woort F, Dubois G, Tansley G, Didier M, Verdegaal L, Franklin S, Van Erck-Westergren E. Validation of an equine fitness tracker: ECG quality and arrhythmia detection. Equine Vet J 2022 Feb 9;55(2):336-43.
- Buhl R, Hesselkilde EM, Carstensen H, Hopster-Iversen C, van Loon G, Decloedt A, Van Steenkiste G, Marr CM, Reef VB, Schwarzwald CC, Mitchell KJ, Nostell K, Nogradi N, Nielsen SS, Carlson J, Platonov PG. Atrial fibrillatory rate as predictor of recurrence of atrial fibrillation in horses treated medically or with electrical cardioversion. Equine Vet J 2022 Nov;54(6):1013-1022.
- Nath LC, Elliott AD, Weir J, Curl P, Rosanowski SM, Franklin S. Incidence, recurrence, and outcome of postrace atrial fibrillation in Thoroughbred horses. J Vet Intern Med 2021 Mar;35(2):1111-1120.
- Buhl R, Hesselkilde EM, Carstensen H, Fenner MF, Jespersen T, Tfelt-Hansen J, Michael Sattler S. Detection of atrial fibrillation with implantable loop recorders in horses. Equine Vet J 2021 Mar;53(2):397-403.
- Buhl R, Carstensen H, Hesselkilde EZ, Klein BZ, Hougaard KM, Ravn KB, Loft-Andersen AV, Fenner MF, Pipper C, Jespersen T. Effect of induced chronic atrial fibrillation on exercise performance in Standardbred trotters. J Vet Intern Med 2018 Jul;32(4):1410-1419.
Use Nutrition Calculator
Check if your horse's diet meets their nutrition requirements with our easy-to-use tool Check your horse's diet with our easy-to-use tool
Talk to a Nutritionist
Discuss your horse's feeding plan with our experts over a free phone consultation Discuss your horse's diet over a phone consultation
Submit Diet Evaluation
Get a customized feeding plan for your horse formulated by our equine nutritionists Get a custom feeding plan formulated by our nutritionists
