Performance Enhancement Drugs, Research Paper Example

Abstract

A critical objective every state jurisdiction that participates in horse racing is the obligation to protect the integrity of sport. The achievement of this objective is facilitated by administration of comprehensive measures to control substance use that has the aptitude of improving the performance of the horse in the course of the race. Research has been conducted with the use of urine and blood specimens that are collected immediately after the race to ascertain if performance enhancement drugs are actually used during these races. Amazingly, it was indeed established that performance enhancement drugs are actually in use during these races though the rate of their use was relatively small. However, traces indicated that some of the drugs that were used are permitted for the purpose of therapeutic medications such as phenylbutazone and flunixin (Soma, Uboh  & Maylin, 1-12) and  (DiMaio Knych, Steffey  & Stanley, 359-366).  All the same, even the drugs that are permitted for the purpose of therapeutic medications can easily be abused.

Introduction

The use of performance enhancement drugs and the abuse of permitted therapeutic medications in horse racing is a subject of a scandal causing insignificant embarrassment (Cassidy, 121-150). Drugging in equine athletes has recently proliferated in the sport, unfortunately leaders in a majority of the racing organizations are against the spirit of reforming the industry (Bertuglia, et al., 1-18).  In most cases, the horses that are scheduled to participate in races are drugged with performance enhancement drugs to improve their performance. Although it is illegal in the United States to drug horses prior to participation, the trend has been documented. In other nations such as the United Kingdom and Australia, fewer cases of drugging horses have been recorded because they are strictly opposed to the practice (Stahl & Manfred, 1-14). Most jurisdictions in the United States sets specific thresholds of permitted medications with divergent penalties assigned to violations and the differing regulations that govern the testing the horses for performance enhancement drugs and varied laboratories that are mandated to conduct these tests (Minnich, 109-113).

Research background

The absence of a central body responsible for regulations has prompted the owners of racehorses as well as trainers to shift from a jurisdiction where they have been barred from participation to another jurisdiction where the regulations are less strict (Palmer, 21-22). In the majority of regions around the globe, horse racing without medications has significantly flourished but in the United States, doping of racehorses is a common occurrence (Kane, 55). Compared to their predecessors, this has resulted in the breaking down of the horses at unprecedented frequencies and participation in several fewer races during their tenure as a result of lack of sound health (Kane, 39.4). The importance of this topic has resulted in the  implementation of reform measures in the Senate as well as the Upper House in Congress that are intended to deal with the matter of use of performance enhancement drugs in racehorses across the United States.

Methods

Blood and urine specimen collected from race horses

The research involved the collection of blood samples from horses that were identified by the use of tattoos. This included the use of 13-mL serum separator along with 4.5 plasma-separator Vacutainer tubes. Total carbon dioxide (TCO2) and erythropoietin (EPO) analysis was achieved through the collection of plasma samples. Harness horses are conventionally used for testing for alkalinizing agents on account of the fact that blood doping using alkalinizing agents is only likely to be beneficial to the horse that competes in enduring races in contrast to the thoroughbred thus the Harness horses were found more suitable for TCO2 tests (Lisa,Marc, Andre, Joshua, Gaensslen & Adam, 438-443).

The researcher also used urine samples in which case, natural void urine was collected from horses which were the classified in two ways, one as laboratory sample and the other one as the free sample. The test was conducted on the laboratory sample while the free sample was reserved for the purposes of confirming the results if there were doubts. Horse owners and trainers who may be charged with violations after the laboratory sample confirms the use of performance enhancement drugs have a chance of verifying the results in an independent laboratory to dispel any potential doubts. A part of the free sample is also reserved in the laboratory to serve the needs of future testing if the need arises (Lisa,Marc, Andre, Joshua, Gaensslen & Adam, 438-443).

Findings

The portion that tested positive for use of performance enhancement drugs in Britain was one out of 400 which translates to 0.25% for the winning as well as the non winning orses in a race. The most frequently detected drugs in the test included anabolic steroids, NSAIDs, methylxanthines as well as local anesthetics. In Illinois, reported range of violations was 123 to 40 from 2006 to 2008. The drastic decrease in the use of performance enhancement drugs in equine races was attributed to intensive testing along with reporting to state authorities for action. In Illinois some other performance enhancement drugs were detected that included antihistamines  such as pyrilamine and anti-asthmatic cromolyn, vasodilators  such as isoxsuprine and verapamil, muscle relaxants also called methocarbamol, tranquilizers  such as acepromazine, promazine and chlorpromazine, local anesthetics such as procaine, lidocaine and mepivacaine, anticholinergic such as glycopyrolate, and opioid analgesics that include morphine, hydromorphone, nalbuphine, codeine, buprenorphine, nalorphine, tramadol as well as oxymorphone (Lisa,Marc, Andre, Joshua, Gaensslen & Adam, 438-443).

Conclusions

Although results indicated a broad array of performance enhancement drugs usage in racehorses across the State of Illinois, the total number of specimens used in the test indicated only a small percentage of violations. According to the research, the violations that were frequently documented involved permitted levels of therapeutic medications such as phenylbutazone and flunixin (Lisa,Marc, Andre, Joshua, Gaensslen & Adam, 438-443) and (Soma, Uboh  & Maylin, 1-12). This led to the conclusion that, although the drugs were associated with validity with regard to their medical application, they must be rightfully administered. The possibility for their abuse cannot be overlooked. Benzoylecgonine was found to appear in relatively low levels in the urine of the horses, and this was attributed to the horse’s causal contact with some objects that had been contaminated with cocaine. This therefore led to the conclusion that, on the basis of the horses’ cocaine pharmacokinetics coupled with the minimum effective dose of cocaine that has the potentials to enhance the performance of the horse during race, the significantly low levels that were identified through the research had no direct implication of deliberate use of performance enhancement drugs during races. In consideration of the high number of medications, it is difficult to arrive at the conclusion that the purpose of administered drug was doping or the detected amount can be attributed to residual effect. The most vital procedure for development as well as maintenance of triumphant program for equine forensic toxicology to detect the use of performance enhancement drugs in racehorses involves avenues of communication with the personnel at the race track, maintaining relevance in global as well as regional doping trends and conducting research on the aptitude for adjustment of individual programs to address conventional needs.

Works Cited

Bertuglia, Andrea, et al. “Epidemiology Of Musculoskeletal Injuries In A Population Of Harness Standardbred Racehorses In Training.” BMC Veterinary Research 10.1 (2014): 1-18. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Apr. 2015.

Cassidy, Kyle1. “Reining In The Use Of Performance Enhancing Drugs In Horseracing: Why A Federal Regulation Is Needed.” Seton Hall Journal Of Sports & Entertainment Law 24.1 (2014): 121-150. OmniFile Full Text Select (H.W. Wilson). Web. 31 Mar. 2015.

DiMaio Knych, H. K., Steffey, E. P. & Stanley, S. D. “Pharmacokinetics And Pharmacodynamics Of Three Intravenous Doses Of Yohimbine In The Horse.” Journal Of Veterinary Pharmacology & Therapeutics 34.4 (2011): 359-366. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Apr. 2015.

Kane, Ed. “Anabolic Steroids — Uses And Abuses. (Cover Story).” DVM: The Newsmagazine Of Veterinary Medicine39.4 (2008): 1E-6E. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Apr. 2015.

Kane, ED. “Panel Questions Drugs In Horse Racing.” DVM: The Newsmagazine Of Veterinary Medicine 43.7 (2012): 55. OmniFile Full Text Select (H.W. Wilson). Web. 2 Apr. 2015.

Minnich, Beth. “Putting The Horse First PART 2.” Arabian Horse World 53.9 (2013): 109-113. OmniFile Full Text Select (H.W. Wilson). Web. 2 Apr. 2015.

Palmer, Griff. “Broken Horses.” IRE Journal 36.2 (2013): 21-22. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Apr. 2015.

Soma, L. R., Uboh, C. E. & Maylin G. M. “The Use Of Phenylbutazone In The Horse.” Journal Of Veterinary Pharmacology & Therapeutics 35.1 (2012): 1-12. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Apr. 2015.

Stahl, Jessica & Manfred Kietzmann. “The Effects Of Chemical And Physical Penetration Enhancers On The Percutaneous Permeation Of Lidocaine Through Equine Skin.” BMC Veterinary Research 10.1 (2014): 1-14. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Apr. 2015.