Regenerative Medicine: The New Age Of Joint Support For Horses
Joint health is an important part of routine care for horses at any age. From preventative maintenance to additional support during an athletic career, supporting horses’ joints helps keep them functioning properly and improves their health and comfort in the long term.
There are a lot of products, devices and procedures available to horse owners looking to support their horses’ joint health. It can be difficult to wade through what modality or product is best and for when. On Episode 143 of the Heels Down Happy Hour Podcast, Dr. Holly Helbig, an equine technical services veterinarian with Zoetis, joined our hosts to talk about regenerative medicine and new advancements available for horse joint health.
“One area where we’ve seen quite a bit of advancement is with regenerative medicine devices (also known as RMDs),” said Dr. Helbig. “These devices process blood collected from the horse to create products proven to improve common causes of lameness in horses.”
Treating lameness in horses or even considering additional joint support in a sound horse requires a customized plan based on an individual horse’s specific needs, Dr. Helbig said. A veterinarian will consider factors like the level of lameness, a horse’s age, health and expected level of activity to determine the right course of treatment.
Dr. Helbig explains more below.
What is Regenerative Medicine? And How Does It Work?
Zoetis is the manufacturer of a device called Pro-Stride APS, a type of RMD that is considered orthobiologic and helps manage osteoarthritis and other causes of lameness in horses.
It is a natural alternative to conventional therapies, explained Dr. Helbig, which historically have been limited to treatments like steroids and hyaluronic acid. While these options do provide some temporary pain relief, they don’t often address the underlying problems or chronic inflammation, Dr. Helbig said.
“Pro-Stride APS is a two-step device that separates and concentrates anti-inflammatory cytokines and growth factors from a horse’s blood to promote long-term healing and help reduce pain and inflammation caused by osteoarthritis,” she said. “Processing is fast, taking less than 20 minutes, and can take place at the farm, stable or clinic and has been shown to improve a horse’s lameness grade for up to one year after a single injection.”
Research continues to prove that regenerative medicine devices are a strong alternative to traditional therapies. In addition to Pro-Stride APS, Zoetis products like Restigen PRP and Centrate BMA, also use autologous therapy (from your horse’s own body) to concentrate the healing properties in the horse’s blood or bone marrow.
Regenerative medicine devices can show benefits in two to four weeks and can last up to a year. [1,2]
“Since every case is different, it’s important to work with a vet to find the proper course of treatment and align on frequency of treatment,” Dr. Helbig said. “Multiple types of treatments can often work in concert with one another.”
To read more about the research, visit these links:
- Pro-Stride® APS Device Shown to Offer Protection Against Synovitis in Horses
- Research From the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center Informs the Use of NSAIDs Alongside Regenerative Medicine Devices
- Metabolic Effects of Pro-Stride® APS and Triamcinolone Acetonide Compared in Recent Research
- New Research Compares Alpha-2-Macroglobulin, Immunomodulatory Cytokines and Growth Factors From Pro-Stride® APS, Restigen® PRP, Alpha2EQ® and Arthrex ACP®
- New Research Informs Use of Regenerative Medicine Devices in Horses With Cushing’s Disease
- Bertone AL, Ishihara A, Zekas L et al. Evaluation of a Single Intra-articular Injection of Autologous Protein Solution for Treatment of Osteoarthritis in Horses. AJVR Vol 75, No. 2, February 2014. 141-151.
- Velloso Alvarez et al. A survey of clinical usage of non-steroidal intra-articular therapeutics by equine practitioners. Front Vet Sci. October 2020. Volume 7. Article 579967.