Race action – illustration only (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
The National Horseracing Authority issued a notice on Monday 26 August 2024 which supersedes and replaces a similar previous NHA notice on Bisphosphonates, of 2019.
The notice states that bisphosphonates is a class of drug which prevents the loss of bone density in the racehorse.
These substances are prohibited substances within the Rules of the NHA:
73.4.1 Substances capable at any time of causing an action or effect, or both an action and effect:
… 73.4.1.6 the musculoskeletal system;
The formal International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) statement within Article 6 of the International Agreement on Breeding, Racing and Wagering is as below, and this is being adopted by the NHA.
Certain special radiolabelled bisphosphonates (which are structurally different from the bisphosphonates available for use therapeutically) are required to be administered to horses for diagnostic nuclear imaging purposes.
As such, their legitimate use should be exempted from those controls. This is noted below in brackets.
Specific requirements regarding bisphosphonates:
Any bisphosphonate (except those radiolabelled bisphosphonates used for diagnostic nuclear imaging in horses) is NOT to be administered to a racehorse:
- under the age of three years and six months as determined by its recorded date of birth;
and
- on the day of the race or on any of the 30 days before the day of the race in which the horse is declared to run.
The bisphosphonate product administered must be licensed for use in horses in this country, and be administered in strict accordance with the label instructions.
There must be a diagnosis determined by a veterinary surgeon that supports the use of a bisphosphonate as an appropriate treatment. Such treatment must be administered by a veterinary surgeon and this must be recorded in the corresponding NHA Veterinary Treatment Register (VTR).
