Glad to entertain!
What I meant was did they attempt to convert the horse’s heartbeat. AF is, if I remember correctly, an electrical defect.
But maybe they thought converting the horse would then allow the use of Regumate according to FEI. Better?
[QUOTE=Ruby G. Weber;3481457]
Glad to entertain!
What I meant was did they attempt to convert the horse’s heartbeat. AF is, if I remember correctly, an electrical defect.
But maybe they thought converting the horse would then allow the use of Regumate according to FEI. Better?[/QUOTE]
I was thinking of the religious freedom issues in China. So I guess that makes it a triple entendre!
Weber: I believe they used beta blockers. Heard complaints that CDK didn’t feel like Myth was himself on these. I’m surprised any beta blocker would be legal…perhaps there was an exception by the FEI?
makes me wonder with Myth going into A Fib (can be stress related): were all those folks who stayed home from Hong Kong right about the trip being too much stress for the horses?
[QUOTE=hsheffield;3481476]
I’m surprised any beta blocker would be legal…perhaps there was an exception by the FEI?[/QUOTE]
Now, beta-blockers ARE specifically listed as prohibited on the FEI list, so if they were used, there would have to have been an exception made by the FEI, yes.
Who stated it actually was an atrial fibrillation? The older drug is quinidine and there is a newer drug available in japan that is easier to administer.
Yes. Slc2 - quinidine is the one I am familiar with. That is why I asked if they tried to convert the horse’s heart rhythm as it is pretty toxic, if memory serves me.
I too wonder if it was AF. Usually brought on by a virus, no?
What I’ve read so far doesn’t necessarily add up to AF. One would assume they were able to ultrasound and EKG the heart in HK?
When Mythilus arrived in Hong Kong he was treated in the Hong Kong Jockey Club Clinic for atrial fibrillation as a result of the stress of his trip.
This is from the USEF press release.
Fenbufen.
BTW, felbinac is added to ultrasound gel for therapeutic purposes…it’s not a part of it from the manufacturer.
Horses CAN be converted…well, their hearts can be:
Transvenous electrical cardioversion of equine atrial fibrillation: patient factors and clinical results in 72 treatment episodes.
McGurrin MK, Physick-Sheard PW, Kenney DG.
Department of Clinical Studies, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada. mcgurrin@uoguelph.ca
BACKGROUND: Transvenous electrical cardioversion (TVEC) has been developed for treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) in horses. The relationship among patient variables, treatment response, and outcome in a typical referral population has not been evaluated. HYPOTHESIS: Patient variables such as age, sex, weight, and duration of arrhythmia affect prognosis for response to treatment and the energy level at which cardioversion occurs. ANIMALS: TVEC was applied to 72 episodes of lone AF in 63 client-owned performance horses, with the majority (54) being Standardbred racehorses. METHODS: Catheterization of the right atrium (RA) and pulmonary artery (PA) through the jugular vein was used for electrode placement before horses were placed under general anesthesia. Biphasic, truncated exponential shock waves were delivered at incremental energy levels until cardioversion was achieved or a maximum single-energy level of 300 J was reached (cumulative energy 50-1,960 J). A multivariate model was constructed to evaluate influence of patient factors on cardioversion energy. RESULTS: Cardioversion was achieved in 71 of 72 episodes (62 of 63 horses) at a mean energy of 165.43 +/- 8.75 J. Cardioversion energy was higher for females than for males, and for interaction terms, weight was negatively related to energy in females and positively related in males. Age was positively related to cardioversion energy in females. No relationship was identified between duration of arrhythmia before treatment and prognosis for response or cardioversion energy. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: TVEC is highly effective in the treatment of lone AF in horses. Although age and sex influence cardioversion energy level, duration of arrhythmia does not.
electrical cardioversion can treat A Fib but the response can often be temporary with a need for retreatment: sometimes within hours. I imagine they chose beta blockers as its a much ‘gentler’ method with a typically more stable conversion.
the article above refers to a jugular vein catheter being placed in the right atrium/pulm art. under general anesthesia. I can’t imagine that Myth went through all that in HK right before performing a GP test at the Olympics!
when you consider everything she must have been going through, Courtney’s shown great focus to have done as well as she did.
oh sure, hsheffield, I was just addressing Ruby’s question about whether horses could be converted, and without drugs.
I have no idea how they treated Mythilus, but recent studies in the literature show that electrical conversion can be highly effective. Some horses don’t tolerate the various drugs well. Recent publications also describe that horses can undergo catheterization and electrode placement without general anesthesia or additional drugs. Don’t know how often the techniques are used in practice but they are published about in the vet literature.
I don’t know, but I’m not convinced that the procedure is highly traumatic. At least, the catheterization and ultrasound part. Humans tolerate it very well and walk out of the office (for example, my dad went through cardiac catheterization two weeks ago). ???
[QUOTE=J-Lu;3482051]
I don’t know, but I’m not convinced that the procedure is highly traumatic.[/QUOTE]
Man, you guys are a tough crowd.
I’m a physiologist. Cardiac catheterization (on one hand), cardiac dysfuntion (on the other hand)… I was in a pediatric cardiology department for a while and kids dealt with cardiac catheterization OK. I believe that in general, if you are a creature experiencing cardiac dysfunction, a wierd feeling due to the advancement of catheters in your vein or artery is the least of your wierd physical feelings.
I’m one who got confused on the other thread with the Surpass thing. I apologize…and thank you for setting it straight!
At this point, I think I’m goign to side with CKD and hope for the best for her and Myth. How heartbreaking!
And also a thanks to everyone for the education on conversion (which also made me laugh), cath stuff, etc. Truly…I mean that.
Cardioversion for A-fib
It was an innocent gaffe to use “converted”. The term for treating A-fib is “Cardioversion”.
[QUOTE=J-Lu;3482251]
I’m a physiologist. Cardiac catheterization (on one hand), cardiac dysfuntion (on the other hand)… I was in a pediatric cardiology department for a while and kids dealt with cardiac catheterization OK. I believe that in general, if you are a creature experiencing cardiac dysfunction, a wierd feeling due to the advancement of catheters in your vein or artery is the least of your wierd physical feelings.[/QUOTE]
Well, I am only the daughter of someone who had severe cardiac problems for 34 years before ultimately passing away at age 60 from his fifth heart attack, but as a result I spent a large part of my childhood and young adulthood with cardiologists in some of the leading hospitals here and abroad. Being able to do a procedure on an outpatient basis and being able to compete in the Olympics within a couple of weeks after – in high heat and humidity, no less – are two different things.
And even routine vet procedures can be stressful for some horses. In any event, I think it is miraculous that they were able to not only get Myth back to health quickly, but that he was able to excel in the way he did at the Games. And it is a real credit to Courtney that she was able to stay focused and turn in such a strong performance.
I’ve actually had the procedure (cardiac catheterization and, in my case, radio frequency ablation). I can assure you, it was much less traumatic than the events and symptoms that led up to it 
I was out of the hospital in 48 hours; there was virtually no “recovery” time after leaving the hospital when my heart rate returned to normal and the routine precautions about a blood clot forming after the catheterization had passed. Best of all, in my case, the “cure” was more or less instantaneous. I have no idea what Mythilus’s condition was or how he was treated, but I don’t have trouble believing that the procedure allowed him to return to competition shape very quickly.
[QUOTE=poltroon;3480605]
It seems quite likely to me that the source is the coupling gel used for the ultrasounds when the Hong Kong veterinarians were examining the heart.[/QUOTE]
Finally a grain of sense!!!
This will all leave the US team older and wiser.
[QUOTE=J-Lu;3481701]
Fenbufen.
BTW, felbinac is added to ultrasound gel for therapeutic purposes…it’s not a part of it from the manufacturer.[/QUOTE]
Actually, felbinac IS available in gel form.
Therapeutic ultrasound and diagnostic ultrasound are two completely different animals. I am pretty sure they use two completely different types of machines. The Ultrasound in my PT’s office doesn’t even have a monitor on it. So I am pretty much discrediting the theory that the NSAID got on the horse because it was left over on the probe. I find that highly unlikely.
Not saying she did anything wrong, or right for that matter, but just thinking ‘Probe-gate’ is not a track worth taking. 
SCFarm
