Corticosteroids

Last month, California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) chairman Greg Ferraro scratched a persistent industry itch. While discussing his thoughts on the rollout of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act's (HISA) drug control program, Ferraro shared his fears that the new federal rules on joint injections were weaker than had previously existed in California. "It's a step backwards," Ferraro said. And this regulatory reshuffle, he added, could lead to an increase in California of irreparable musculoskeletal injuries, especially of the fetlock joint. "California is the point of the spear in terms...

Edited Press Release The Maryland Racing Commission, upon the recommendation of its Equine Safety, Health and Welfare Advisory Committee, has approved a motion to modify a regulation on five corticosteroids to eliminate testing threshold levels and employ level of detection for the substances. The MRC took the action at its Sept. 23 meeting at Laurel Park. The change will be filed with emergency status and there will be public comment period. Given the regulatory process involved in rule-making, it is anticipated the update regulation will be implemented Nov. 1. The...

New policies on the use of corticosteroids and bronchodilators-including Clenbuterol--for all yearlings, horses in and out of training and unraced 2-year-olds will be introduced at the beginning of the UK and Irish yearling sales from Sept. 1 forward, Tattersalls and Goffs announced on Monday. Starting with the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale, all stock sold at the two sales companies will have these restrictions applied. These new Conditions of Sale will allow buyers to have post-sale testing for corticosteroids and bronchodilators (Clenbuterol). Any positive test or any trace of bronchodilators...

The New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) teleconference meeting Tuesday resulted in the adoption of four new Thoroughbred-related rules and the proposal of two others. Even though it was the NYSGC's first meeting since the COVID-19 crisis halted the state's racing industry in March, the five commissioners who participated did not discuss the pandemic or any aspect of return-to-racing plans for New York tracks. The only time the coronavirus got an oblique mention was during the reading into the record of a proposed emergency rule regarding changing qualifying race requirements...

Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton are instating new restrictions on the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids and bronchodilators, including Clenbuterol, for all horses sold at sales conducted by the two major Thoroughbred auction houses effective immediately, officials from Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton announced Thursday. These latest reforms are in addition to restrictions put in place earlier this year for 2-year-old sales held at Keeneland and Fasig-Tipton, and follow action in 2009 to ban the use of anabolic steroids in sales horses and last year's ban on the off-label use of bisphosphonates...