screening methods have been in place at the NHA for many years . NOTICE TO ALL TRAINERS PEPTIDES AND PROTEINS Most conventional medication contain drug substances which are small chemical molecules . Many of these can affect the horse and hundreds of these are routinely screened for by the NHA Laboratory . Many of these newer generation substances which are prohibited and which are of concern are peptide and proteins similar to those found naturally in the horse . This Laboratory is actively involved in a program to extend the screening of racing and out of competition specimens for an increasing number of peptide and protein substances which can affect the horse . These are the future drugs of concern , most of these substances are classified as Class 1 , Forbidden Substances within the Rules of the NHA .
NOTICE TO ALL TRAINERS THE AVAILABILITY OF NSAIDS AS OVER-THE-COUNTER AND SHOP FRONT PRODUCTS Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs ( NSAID ’ s ) are pharmaceutical substances which are prescribed for the treatment of muscle and joint injury , pain , swelling and inflammation . In the form of tablets , capsules and injections these can also be obtained by medical prescription or as dispensed by a pharmacist . These non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs contain however also be obtained in certain products which do not have a pharmaceutical schedule which are sold in shops without a prescription . The purchase and use of such preparations in racehorses can results in positive findings for these prohibited substances . These preparation are normally gel and plaster packs with trade names such as : Voltaren Emulgel containing Diclofenac Fastum containing Ketoprofen Transact containing Flurbiprofen It is important that care is taken when purchasing such substances and when using such preparations on horses . Consult with your veterinarian in this regard . NOTICE TO ALL TRAINERS Reports of the ALLEDGED use of prohibited substances SUCH AS ACTH , ITPP AND EPO in racing It has come to our attention that several web based preparation supplier companies are selling a variety of equine products . These are allegedly sourced by some local racehorse trainers and owners and these are administered to racehorses . Many of these companies have only website addresses as their only point of contact or do not have a physical address or only have an overseas address which cannot be verified . http :// www . nhra . co . za / notices . php 2017 / 01 / 17 , 2749 PM Page 2 of 5 Several such preparations were sourced by the NHA and these were screened for the presence of prohibited substances at the NHA Laboratory . The analysis of these products indicated that these preparations do not contain the components that are claimed on the label . Prohibited substances are not present within these preparations . It is important to be aware that these label and web advertisement claims are inaccurate and misleading . The use of these products does not constitute the administration of the indicated prohibited substance . This would result in such false claims being made by trainers and owners which use these products . The findings by our Laboratory that the label claims of these products are not correct is substantiated by similar testing of these and other such preparations at other racing laboratories . The findings at these laboratories mirror ours . Some examples of such substances include ITPP , Aranesp ( a form of Erythropoietin / EPO ), ACTH and TB-500 ( a peptide drug ). Within some of these products which were tested the claimed vitamins and amino acids have been shown present , but not the claimed major component . In some products the claimed prohibited substance is present but is contained in a much lower concentrations than indicated or at a level much lower than would affect the horse . The pricing of many of these products are suspiciously low considering the amount of the chemical or biochemical substance which the product is claimed to contain . The storage conditions specified for the product is often not
12 • Equine Health Update •