Sprinter Sacre

claracanter said:
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Does AF mean that if its all normal and he runs again, it will be up to Barry during a race to decide if SS's heart is ok? What an awful responsibility when you know the horse already has a problem.
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I'm with you, except that from what the more learned and experienced on here, Rossdales and NH say, there will no longer be a problem. The horse's heart problem, is over. It's as if it never happened, and again, as you, that surprises me. It must be so because no jockey in his right mind would get on the back of a horse which would be likely to drop dead under him, at full tilt, and that's not including the advice from Trainer, Vet and Owner.

Time alone will allow us to say "Told you so", or to remain surprised!!

Alec.
 
I have bad AF myself, they have tried to correct it like they did with Denman but it didn't work. I don't want to take the drugs as they make me sick. It is controlled now with beta blockers.
I feel well, have no symptoms I can walk fast, carry shopping, go up stairs. I am sure though it would stop me doing anything very energetic. Presume SS was alright at half speed gallops, but felt wrong in the race.
Infections can cause it in people & horses, didn't he have a dirty scope some time back? Hopefully he will be fine now.

There have been some nasty comments from some of the posters on Racing Forum, but I get the feeling some of these don't like horses, only betting on them.
 
I have had two horses with AF and both continued competing (Endurance Horses) The first was diagnosed at the first vet gate in a 100k race. He finished 3rd. The second has since won Endurance races and at the age of 24 is still going strong and being prepared of next season.

If they found the reason for Sacre's problem and have corrected it then there is no reason why he will not race again

"Atrial Fibrillation

What is happening in the heart during atrial fibrillation?
In atrial fibrillation, the cardiac impulse becomes confused at the level of the SA node. For reasons that are not entirely clear - again, most likely because of the very large size of the horse's heart, and because of high input from the vagal nerves - the signal from the SA node does not travel smoothly through the atria to the AV node and then to the ventricles. Rather, multiple signals come from various areas of the atria that begin to act like many small SA nodes. Only a few of these signals manage to get to the AV node and then to the ventricles. The result? The atria never relax or contract properly, and the heart does not get the chance to pump as efficiently as it should.

What causes atrial fibrillation?

In the majority of horses, there is no discernable underlying cause for the atrial fibrillation. Once again, the horse's large heart and high input from the vagal nerves is to blame - we theorize that these inputs cause the signal from the SA node to become disorganized.
Some horses do have heart murmurs and underlying valvular disease that precipitate the atrial fibrillation.
Other factors that may contribute to atrial fibrillation include
Viral disease
Low potassium levels in the blood - this can occur secondary to using Lasix (a drug used in racehorses that are 'bleeders').
Anemia
Colic
What effect does atrial fibrillation have on the horse's performance?
Horses have an enormous cardiac reserve - meaning that their hearts are capable of delivering far more blood than they need for mild to moderate work. What does this mean for the horse? It means that horses usually don't show signs of exercise intolerance due to atrial fibrillation until they start to exercise at high levels - for instance, racing, the three-day eventing, or polo.

How do we diagnose atrial fibrillation?
The astute veterinarian can usually be suspicious of atrial fibrillation just on auscultation. The astute veterinarian will notice that the rhythm (unlike, for instance, 2ºAV Block) is irregularly irregular. Veterinarians often refer to it as sounding like 'sneakers in a dryer', or 'bongo drums'.

The definitive diagnosis is made with an electrocardiogram. Remember that the 'p' wave reflects electrical activity in the atrium due to the SA node - if the SA node isn't firing properly, then there won't be a recognizable 'p' wave. Instead, there are multiple fibrillation, or 'f' waves - perhaps 20 or 30 of them where there ought to be only one 'p' wave.



My horse doesn't race or play polo - he's just a pleasure horse. Does his atrial fibrillation need to be treated?
In most instances, the answer is 'yes'. Most horses do not have any underlying cardiac pathology that causes a-fib. However, longstanding a-fib can lead to cardiac disease.

Sometimes, the answer is 'no'. The treatment for a-fib (see below) is potentially dangerous. So, if your horse is debilitated or is at high risk for toxicity for other reasons, you may choose not to treat. If your horse doesn't need to do high-intensity work, you may never notice that he has a problem.

How do we treat atrial fibrillation?
The treatment of choice is a drug called quinidine. Quinidine has to be given with a nasogastric tube every 2 hours throughout the treatment period. This drug can have very toxic effects on horses, such as colic, founder, collapse, swelling around the throat, and abnormal heart rhythms (other than a-fib). For these reasons, we advise that horses only be treated at facilities where they can be monitored continually, preferably with a 24-hour ECG monitor.

What is the prognosis for recovery from atrial fibrillation?
The prognosis is excellent (meaning that there is a 95% chance of recovery) if:

The resting heart rate is less than 60 beats per minute
The atrial fibrillation has been present for less than 4 months
There is no associated heart murmur, or the murmur is of low intensity (grade 2 out of a possible 6, or less).
The prognosis is guarded to good (meaning that there is an 80% chance of recovery, but a 60% chance that the atrial fibrillation will return) if:

The heart rate is greater than 60 beats per minute
The atrial fibrillation has been present for more than 4 months
There is an associated heart murmur that is grade 3 out of 6 or more."
 
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My horse developed atrial fibrillation and was treated with the Quinidine method but to no avail. He eventually had to be put down age 14 just 5 months after diagnosis. He kept falling over. Once he bolted through a fence I am convinced he had anoxia . He also had terrible oedema but I tried everything the vet wanted to put him down after the Quinidine but I would not hear of it.
I sent all details of the investigations after he had died to Newmarket as I wanted to know why. The valves of his heart were "shot to bits" quote due to the equine herpes virus.! that is why the Quinidine did not work. This was 1992 so there must now be better treatments and diagnosis for this condition.
 
Such good news, so pleased for all at Seven Barrows - hope Sprinter maintains his health, he's such a magnificent horse.
.
 
I havnt a clue why you think its odd, yes they were expecting him to be fine today because he has shown no signs since his race, I would have been surprised if he didnt pass today. Its my belief it was a result of a virus which was short lived, lots of yards are affected by this, in fact Alan Kings yard is being closed for the time being. Colin Tizzard had sme horses affected as well, luckily it didnt affect Cue Card.

With Denman he had a very hard race in the Hennessy where he won with top weight and in heavy ground, he might well have had underlying problems but this race made it worse which is probably why he had to have treatment.
 
Well they can't really win can they? If BG hadn't pulled him up and Sprinter had come to grief everyone would be up in arms wondering why he didn't pull him up. He felt him stop pulling and realised something wasn't right and pulled him up - and quite rightly so given the vet reports. If he wasn't right I'm sure they'd retire him or leave him until next season - but if he's been given the all clear now by an expert there is no reason for him not to go back into monitored training. I for one look forward to see that wonderful horse back on the racecourse, he is a delight to watch.
 
When a horse has had a virus they can appear perfectly OK, fit and well, until they are put under strain.
There was a local horse that had been ill, got better and returned to work and was out on a hunt pleasure ride when it just dropped dead, and vet thought that the virus had affected his heart. This is why we have to vaccinate our competition horses for flu. But there are always new bugs around.
 
bonny said:
I have no idea, just think it's all very odd and like I say, everybody was expecting him to be fine today. Don't suppose we will ever know but sad that there will always be a cloud handing over him now.
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It's not odd. There was a problem, it was investigated, it appears to have cleared but they're now taking it very slowly and only might run at the Festival. If you read the latest news on At The Races the Henderson team are taking it seriously so something's obviously happened and the horse doesn't owe anyone anything.
 
bonny said:
I have no idea, just think it's all very odd and like I say, everybody was expecting him to be fine today. Don't suppose we will ever know but sad that there will always be a cloud handing over him now.
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Bonny, the only person who appears to think it is odd is yourself. Maybe you should take some time to research equine cardiology and arrhythmias including atrial fibrillation so that you have a better understanding of the condition? Certainly as an equine veterinary surgeon and someone with an interest in racing I see absolutely nothing 'odd' about what has gone on.

Apart from anything else, by suggesting you think there is something not right about events, are you implying you believe that the veterinary surgeons who have treated SS are somehow lying about the findings? I think its downright preposterous to suggest that Celia Marr and the Rossdales team would do anything other than diagnose and treat what was in front of them and report on this accordingly.
 
bonny said:
I have no idea, just think it's all very odd and like I say, everybody was expecting him to be fine today. Don't suppose we will ever know but sad that there will always be a cloud handing over him now.
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I listened to Celia Marr on The Morning Line, and she too seems to think that it's a little too early to give him a clean bill of health.

Whether "Cloud" is the right word, I'm not sure, but for certain there will always be a question mark, and that would be inevitable.

Alec.
 
I've been fortunate to have a previous horse of mine treated by Celia Marr and I for one would trust her judgement. I'm sure she will have the best interests of the horse as a priority throughout his treatment.
 
He's entered for the Queen Mother... Be interested to see what happens in 10 weeks time, I hope he's back to his best!
 
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