KHRC Funds Study on New Corticosteroid

With the emphasis on conducting research for the benefit of the racing industry, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has announced its intention to fund a study to establish parameters for the use of isoflupredone…

A corticosteroid which gaining favor as an anti-inflammatory agent for racehorses. Corticosteroids are used quite extensively in thoroughbred horseracing, and depending on the type of drug, their use is restricted for between two and five days before a race.

The study will be carried out by Lexington-based drug-testing laboratory, HFL Sports Science, which will analyze blood and urine samples taken from horses being treated with isoflupredone, with the goal of establishing the rate at which standard doses of the corticosteroid are metabolized. The KHRC’s equine medical director, Dr. Mary Scollay explained that this analysis is likely to provide information which can be used by regulators to define both threshold levels and withdrawal times for isoflupredone.

Blood and urine samples for the study will be gathered by the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium – a national group funded by the horseracing industry to formulate medication policies. The findings of the study will most likely form the basis of recommendations applicable to all racing jurisdictions. Because of the increased use of isoflupredone, it is under consideration for being added to the more than twenty medications that are deemed to be allowable therapeutic medications.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission regularly funds studies through its Equine Drug Research Council to ensure the industry keeps up-to-date with current trends. The three standardbred and five thoroughbred racetracks in the state of Kentucky are licensed by the KHRC and individuals involved in the horseracing industry must be licensed by the commission.