The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) announced in late 2011 four new detection times for commonly used veterinary medicines: the sedative acepromazine, the sedative /analgesic combination detomidine/butorphanol, the anti-inflammatory treatment prednisolone, and the airway treatment salmeterol. Detection times are the intervals between the time of the last drug administration and the time at which urine (and blood) concentrations are below the laboratory screening limit.

The new detection times are as follows, according to the BHA website:

• Acepromazine–72 hours
• Detomidine/Butorphanol–48 hours
• Prednisolone–48 hours
• Salmeterol–48 hours

The work to produce these Detection Times was performed at the Authority’s Centre for Racehorse Studies, located in Suffolk, and its contractor laboratory HFL Sport Science in Middlesex. Changes were also been made to some existing detection times. Detection times for the local anaesthetics mepivacaine and lidocaine were lengthened while times for the airway treatments ipratropium and dembrexine were shortened.

Tim Morris, DVM, PhD, BHA director of equine science and welfare said, "The authority has shown its commitment to providing advice on medication control with a substantial investment to produce more detection times and more information and advice