The
Scientific Advisory Group of the Association of Racing Commissioners
International (ARCI) has reported that there is no current science linking
furosemide treatments to muscular skeletal issues that may be a contributing
cause of equine breakdowns in racing.
The
group reported to a meeting of the RCI’s Drug Testing Standards and Practices
Committee that they discussed the issue at their meeting on April 2, 2019 and
were not aware of any published studies or papers providing any evidence of
such a link.
The
Scientific Advisory Group members participating in the meeting were: Dr.
Scot Stanley, Dr. Heather Kynch, Dr. George Maylin, Dr. Ken McKeever, Dr.
Cynthia Cole, Dr. Mary Robinson, Dr. Rick Sams, and Dr. Thomas Tobin.
“There
remains an attempt on the part of some organizations and individuals to leave
the impression that the current equine welfare policy of permitting the
voluntary race day use of furosemide under controlled and transparent
circumstances is somehow tied to the tragic equine deaths that have occurred at
Santa Anita and elsewhere,” said ARCI President Ed Martin in a statement.
“The
ARCI is never averse to examining an existing policy and we were concerned that
such statements might be based upon solid scientific information we have yet
been able to analyze. Apparently, they are not. Our science
advisors were asked to review this matter and make us aware of any new information
that might be relevant to the equine tragedies that have occurred,” he
said.
In
2011, after two RCI officers called for the phase out of race day furosemide
treatments, an industry debate on the issue was reignited. The Drug
Testing Standards and Practices Committee conducted a review of the existing
policy and held a public hearing during the Saratoga meet.
Input
was received from a variety of experts, including Dr. N. Edward Robinson from
the Center for Integrative Toxicology at the Veterinary Medical Center at
Michigan State University. Dr. Robinson is a recognized expert in
the study of animal lung dysfunction, particularly equine airway
disease. He directs the Equine Pulmonary Research Laboratory at MSU
which is dedicated to studying the pathogenesis and treatment of diseases of
the air passages (airways) of the horse.
After
completion of that review, the committee decided that there was insufficient
science to justify change to not change the current policy.
The
rationale for current furosemide policy was strengthened by a 2014 Consensus
statement from the independent American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine
(ACVIM) published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine entitled Exercise Induced Pulmonary
Hemorrhage in Horses.
