Showing posts with label laminitis conference. Show all posts
Showing posts with label laminitis conference. Show all posts

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Save November 1-3, 2013 for the International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot


What: International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot
When: November 1 to 3, 2013
Where: Marriott Convention Center  
 1001 Okeechobee Boulevard • West Palm Beach, Florida 33401 USA
For more information about the Laminitis Conference go to: 

Saturday, February 16, 2013

The Laminitis Conference Announces Call for Abstracts/Presentation/Poster Summaries for 2013

Laminitis Conference 2013 Abstracts
Plastination specimen by Dr. Christoph Von Horst, HC Biovision/plastinate.com
The International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot has published its call for abstracts for the 2013 conference, to be held November 1-3, 2013 in West Palm Beach, Florida.

The document, visible in this article, can be downloaded for your reference or shared to social media.

Saturday, November 06, 2010

Can You Name Five Breeders Cup Champions Who Died Because of Laminitis? Can You Name Ten?

equine laminitis disease of champions

It's Breeders Cup weekend and Hoofcare Publishing hopes you are enjoying the spectacle at Churchill Downs, as the world's best racehorses compete for fame and glory and riches. For many, these will be their last races, and the vans will take them straight to Lexington and a new life on a breeding farm on Monday morning. In the meantime, this is their chance to make it into the history books. 

Many who made it into the history books at the Breeders Cup lost their lives prematurely to the terrible disease of laminitis. You may know about Kentucky Derby winners like Secretariat, Sunday Silence, and Barbaro, but many other famous Thoroughbreds couldn't beat the disease, either. And many of them were Breeders Cup champions.

Some great champions lost to laminitis may come to mind: Bayakoa, who won the Breeders Cup Distaff (know called the Ladies Classic) in both 1989 and 1990; Kip Deville who won the Breeders Cup Mile in 2007;  and Sunday Silence, who won the Classic in 1989, and Black Tie Affair who won it in 1991. 

Some whose deaths weren't quite so well publicized but who should not be forgotten are Arcangues, who won the Classic in 1993; Barathea who won the Mile in 1994; Flanders who won the Juvenile Fillies in 1994; Outstandingly who won the Juvenile Fillies in 1984; and In the Wings who won the Turf in 1990.

So there you have at least ten champions. Who knows how many more there may be? All had their greatest moment winning at the Breeders Cup. All probably had their worst moments experiencing the pain of laminitis; most were euthanized because of the disease, to end their suffering.

Each could beat the best racehorses of his or her generation, but couldn't beat laminitis.


Perhaps if you win big on a bet today or maybe if you just dream big of living in a horse world where laminitis is at least manageable and preventable, you'll send a donation in the memory of a fallen champion to a laminitis research charity. 

The Hoof Blog recommends The Laminitis Institute at the University of Pennsylvania.

Learn how to make a donation--no matter how large or small--to the Institute by sending an email to Institute administrator Patty Welch: laminitis@vet.upenn.edu 

Learn more about the Laminitis Institute at www.laminitisinstitute.org.

And, if you'd like to mark your calendar, the 6th International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot will be in full swing one year from today. The conference returns to West Palm Beach, Florida on November 4-6, 2011. Watch for news at the conference web site:

See you there.



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Friday, May 11, 2007

New Lameness Treatments: IRAP™ Therapy

One of several new high-tech treatments for equine lameness is the creation of an enriched serum injection for horses with potential joint damage. "IRAP" is not a new hip-hop group; it's a therapy that has quickly made its own place at the table of equine therapy, especially for sport horses and racehorses whose owners expect a return to the previous level of soundness and performance...in the shortest possible length of time.

Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist Protein (IRAP™) therapy works like this: the veterinarian, often a surgeon or lameness specialist, injects a horse’s affected joint with serum that contains anti-inflammatory proteins that block the harmful effects of Interleukin-1 (IL-1), an inflammatory cytokine that has been shown to accelerate destruction of cartilage during osteoarthritis. (A cytokine is a chemical secreted by the immune system to attack infections and damaged or dying cells.)

What makes the process a little complicated is that Interleukin-1 (IL-1) is a quite normal part of the horse's inflammatory response but it can sometimes be detrimental to a horse's joints and accelerate damage to cartilage there. IRAP™ creates a barrier that prevents IL-1 from having its damaging effect.

Since the serum sample is derived from the horse’s own blood, there is minimal risk of an adverse reaction. The incubated serum also does not contain any drugs.

The treatment process consists of drawing a blood sample using a special syringe containing glass beads. The blood is incubated for 24 hours and a centrifuge separates the serum from the red blood cells. The serum, now enriched with Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist protein, is divided into three or four doses. The horse receives one dose injected into the affected joint once weekly for three to five weeks.

A quick check around the web found that quite a few vet clinics are promoting IRAP therapy. Here are some comments from veterinarians:

Dr. Laura Werner of The Equine Center in San Luis Obispo, California: "The reason IRAP is so exciting is its potential for a long-term effect on battling osteoarthritis. Whereas some of the therapies might only have short-term effect, IRAP has the potential to stop the cartilage matrix from being degraded and increase healing. IRAP has the ability to stop the inflammation cycle and bring comfort to your horse. The research on IRAP is ongoing but the results have been very encouraging."

Dr. Laurie Tyrrell of Virginia Equine Imaging: "IRAP can also be used as maintenance therapy throughout a competition season to reduce the amount of steroid use. IRAP therapy is not for every horse. There are some factors that make a horse a less successful candidate; however the therapy shows great promise for horses that have become refractory to traditional management of osteoarthritis, as well as offering an alternative therapy for those worried about excessive use of corticosteroids."

According to the web site of Steinbeck Country Equine Clinic in Salinas, California: "Coffin joints and stifles that don’t respond well to steroid injections seem to be the most popular condition to treat (with IRAP therapy). Reactions are uncommon largely due to the fact that it is the patient’s own serum."

IRAP is one of the many therapies and treatments that will be on the program of the 4th International Equine Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot to be held in West Palm Beach, Florida, from November 2-4.

Sunday, September 19, 2004

2005 International Laminitis Conference Returns to Palm Beach

Palm Beach laminitis conference


Block your calendar now! On the first weekend in November 2005 (next year), the 3rd International Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot will be held at the Palm Beach Convention Center in Palm Beach, Florida.

Organized by Dr Jim Orsini of the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center and a committee that includes laminitis researchers David Hood and Chris Pollitt--along with experts like Rob Boswell of Palm Beach Equine Clinic and farrier Rob Sigafoos of New Bolton Center--the conference is well into the planning stages, with two days of lectures and scientific programs and a full day of collaborative practical sessions. A special program for horseowners will be included as well.

Information will be available in Hoofcare & Lameness Journal.