2/18/2018 Study Confirms Diet Can Help Manage Equine Gastric Ulcers - The Horse

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Study Confirms Diet CanHelp Manage Equine GastricUlcersA low-starch, fiber-based diet can help manage equine gastric ulcersyndrome after medical treatment is stopped.

By Edited Press Release | Jul 19, 2017 | Article, Grains, Hay, Pasture andForages, Ulcers, Veterinary Practice

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2/18/2018 Study Confirms Diet Can Help Manage Equine Gastric Ulcers - The Horse

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Equine gastric ulcer syndrome (EGUS) can affect any horse. It can causediscomfort and have detrimental effects on both behavior and performance. Butnew research has confirmed that a suitable diet can help to manage the condition,especially after veterinary treatment is stopped.

Gastric ulcer syndrome refers to ulceration of the horse’s stomach lining. Severalfactors, including nutrition, have been shown to increase the risk of ulcers

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2/18/2018 Study Confirms Diet Can Help Manage Equine Gastric Ulcers - The Horse

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developing, particularly in the nonglandular, or squamous, part of the stomach.(The horse’s stomach is divided into two sections: the upper nonglandular portionand the lower glandular portion. Stomach acid is secreted in the glandular portion,which is coated with a protective mucus and bicarbonate layer. The nonglandularportion has less protection from mucus and bicarbonate, making it more prone togastric ulcer development.) In horses that are actively exercising and training, theincidence of gastric ulceration has been reported to be up to 90% in somesubpopulations. While dietary and management changes are often recommendedto help reduce EGUS risk, they’re often suggested in conjunction with or followingveterinary pharmaceutical treatment. However, until now there has been littlepublished work to confirm their benefit under such circumstances.

The new research study, “Effect of changing diet on gastric ulceration inexercising horses and ponies following cessation of omeprazole treatment,” wasconducted by Nanna Luthersson, DVM, from the private Danish practiceHestedoktoren, and Coby Bolger, DVM, managing director Horse1 EquineNutrition and Care Center, in Spain. The pair also worked with colleagues fromthe University of Madrid, in Spain; University of Glasgow, in Scotland; Spillers, inEngland; and the WALTHAM Equine Studies Group, also in England. The studywas presented at the International Equine Colic Research Symposium, whichtook place July 18-20 in Lexington, Kentucky.

The study evaluated the effect of dietary change in combination with omeprazoletreatment and after treatment was discontinued. The 32 horses in this part of thetrial had been diagnosed with significant equine squamous gastric disease(ESGD) and were in hard work. For the purpose of more accurate comparisonsthe horses were paired, according to the severity of their ulcers, workload,management, and original diet.

On a random basis one of each pair was assigned to a specified low-starch, fiber-based diet consisting of their own forage alongside a high-fiber high-energy cube(Spillers HDF Power Cubes) and a high-oil, low-starch, chopped-alfalfa-based

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feed (Winergy Equilibrium Growth). The other stayed on their original diet. Allanimals were scoped before, after the recommended course of omeprazoletreatment, and six weeks after the omeprazole finished.

[image imageid="7226" includeTitle="false" includeSummary="false"]All animalswere scoped before, after the recommended course of omeprazole treatment,and six weeks after the omeprazole finished.[/image]

The ulcers in horses in the no diet change group improved significantly withomeprazole administration, but when the treatment was stopped many horses’ulcers regressed. Overall, by the end of the trial, they were not significantlydifferent to when they had started.

However, the horses in the dietary change group overall showed significantlyimproved ESGD scores, not only following the omeprazole treatment but alsoafter the treatment had stopped. This showed that a diet change helped maintainomeprazole’s beneficial effects even after treatment ended.

“This exciting work confirms what we suspected: that whilst appropriate dietarychange can provide additional support to medical treatment for EGUS mostimportantly it can help maintain better gastric health post medical treatment,” saidClare Barfoot, RNutr, research and development manager at Spillers.

The study achieved an award in 2016 for research in horse welfare from theFundación para la Promoción del Deporte Ecuestre, Spain.

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