Summary Equine gastric ulcer syndrome (EGUS) is very common among performance horses, with a reported prevalence of approximately 90% in racehorses, and also >50% in foals. Omeprazole, an acid pump inhibitor 5 times more potent than ranitidine, has been used with great success to treat EGUS. This multicentre study of Thoroughbred racehorses with endoscopically verified gastric ulcers was designed to demonstrate the efficacy of an equine oral paste formulation of omeprazole in the treatment and prevention of recurrence of EGUS. Of the 100 horses entered into the study, 25 were sham‐dosed for the full 58 days of the study. The remaining 75 horses all received omeprazole paste, 4 mg/kg bwt/day once daily for 28 days. At Day 28, 25 of treated horses continued on this dosing regimen while 25 received a half dose (2 mg/kg bwt once daily) and 25 horses were sham‐dosed. By Day 28, gastric ulcers were completely healed in 77% of omeprazole‐treated horses, while 92% were significantly (P<0.01) improved. In contrast, 96% of the sham‐dosed horses still had gastric ulcers at Day 28. The improvement was maintained in horses that continued on either a full dose or half dose of omeprazole paste until Day 58. However, in those horses that were removed from omeprazole treatment at Day 28, the incidence and severity of the gastric ulcers at the end of the study were similar to those horses that did not receive the omeprazole paste. This study demonstrates that omeprazole paste, 4 mg/kg bwt per os, once daily, is highly effective in healing gastric ulcers in Thoroughbred racehorses and that either a full dose or half dose of omeprazole paste effectively prevents the recurrence of EGUS. The study also indicates that gastric ulcers in untreated horses did not demonstrate a significant rate of spontaneous healing.

Results suggested that overall clinical efficacy of a paste formulation of firocoxib in horses with naturally occurring osteoarthritis was comparable to efficacy of a paste formulation of phenylbutazone.

Background: Cisplatin combined with a nonselective cyclooxygenase (cox) inhibitor has potent antitumor activity against transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) in dogs, but this treatment is limited by renal toxicosis. Cox-2 is expressed in TCC, but only in limited sites within the kidney. A cox-2 inhibitor could enhance the antitumor activity of cisplatin with potentially fewer adverse effects on the kidney.Hypothesis: Cisplatin/cox-2 inhibitor treatment will have greater antitumor activity but no more renal toxicosis than cisplatin alone in dogs with TCC.Animals: Forty-four dogs with naturally occurring urinary bladder TCC. Methods: Dogs were randomized to receive cisplatin (60 mg/m 2 IV q21d), firocoxib (5 mg/kg PO q24h), or the combination. Tumor measurements were determined before and at 6-week intervals during treatment. Renal function was monitored by serum creatinine concentration, iohexol clearance, and urine specific gravity. Toxicoses were graded according to Veterinary Co-Operative Oncology Group (VCOG) criteria.Results: The remission rate with cisplatin/firocoxib (57%) was significantly (P = .021) higher than that with cisplatin alone (13%). Renal and gastrointestinal toxicoses were common in dogs receiving cisplatin, but there were no significant differences between dogs receiving cisplatin or cisplatin/firocoxib. Firocoxib alone induced partial remission or stable disease in 20 and 33% of dogs, respectively.Conclusions: Firocoxib significantly enhanced the antitumor activity of cisplatin resulting in partial remission in more than half of the cases. The toxicoses inherent to cisplatin, however, were noted in dogs receiving this combination. Firocoxib had antitumor effects as a single agent and can be considered a palliative treatment for dogs with TCC.

Data suggest that inhibition of angiotensin converting enzyme was effective in modulating progressive renal injury, which was associated with reduction of glomerular and systemic hypertension and proteinuria but not glomerular hypertrophy. Inhibition of angiotensin converting enzyme may be effective for modulating progression of renal disease in dogs.

Sham-dose-treated horses had significantly higher ulcer scores than did horses treated with any of the omeprazole dosages evaluated. Among horses treated with omeprazole, there was no significant interaction of dose (1 or 2 mg/kg) and loading dose; therefore, the lowest effective dose (1 mg/kg) was evaluated in the dose confirmation portion of the study. In the dose confirmation study, 4 of 39 (10%) sham-dose-treated horses remained ulcer free, which was significantly different from the proportion of horses (31/38 [82%]) receiving 1 mg of omeprazole/kg that remained ulcer free. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE; Results indicated that omeprazole administered at a dosage of 1 mg/kg, PO, every 24 hours for 28 days was effective for prevention of gastric ulcers in horses starting race training.