With Kentucky soon putting more stringent regulations in place regarding corticosteroid administration in racehorses, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) is collecting information on elimination times following specific uses of the medications provided by participating racetrack veterinarians.

On June 6, the uniform medication rules the KHRC approved late last year will become reality at Kentucky tracks. Some of the biggest changes in the rules involve corticosteroids. Recommended withdrawal times for three corticosteroids—betamethasone, methylprednisolone, and triamcinolone—will jump to seven days from the current 48 or 72 hours.

Mary Scollay, DVM, KHRC equine medical director, said the withdrawal times offered as guidance with the uniform medication rules were shaped from a study with controlled parameters, which Scollay noted, are needed for effective scientific study.

While the scientific study looked at single injections into healthy animals, racetrack veterinarians could encounter situations in the field that are not as controlled. For instance, a veterinarian could inject more than one joint on a horse, or a horse might have swelling that wasn't present in the test animals. The KHRC hopes to address those issues by providing information collected in the field