Polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAAG) and stanolozol might offer veterinarians and owners new alternative treatment options to help reduce pain, improve joint function, and minimize joint tissue deterioration in horses with arthritis. | Photo: iStock

When it comes to caring for horses with osteoarthritis (OA), management strategies focus on reducing pain, improving joint function, and minimizing deterioration of joint tissues. A variety of therapies exist, including intra-articular (IA, in the joint) medications such as corticosteroids, hyaluronans, and pentosan polysulfates, along with biological agents—stems cells and platelet-rich plasma, for instance.

The most common first line of defense against OA, however, is IA corticosteroids, said Niklas Drumm, DrMedVet, Dipl. ACVS-LA, ECVS, a shareholder and practitioner at Tierklinik Lusche, in Germany. But two relatively new therapies—polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAAG) and stanolozol—might offer alternatives for managing osteoarthritis in horses. He described these during the 2018 British Equine Veterinary Association Congress, held Sept. 12-15, in Birmingham, U.K.

Polyacrylamide Hydrogel

Polyacrylamide hydrogel is a nondegradable synthetic watery gel that integrates safely with soft tissues, said Drumm. It’s been used in human medicine for more than 15 years; doctors primarily use it to treat stress incontinence in women and to reinforce facial tissues