Will race with Adjunct

[deathandgravity]

See this on the Keeneland Scratches & Changes :confused:

How is this different then Lasix and Bute?

Cheers!

[cj]

Found on Google:

"Adjunct bleeder medications are a group of drugs that anecdotally are thought to benefit horses that "bleed through" furosemide. That is, horses who despite being on Lasix, for example, still experience exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH). We are currently funding research to determine whether these drugs are beneficial or not. Personally, in my own handicapping, I have not seen any substantial benefit to the form of the horse when on an adjunct so I tend to ignore the "A." Please draw your own conclusions when wagering your hard earned money, however!"

[johnhannibalsmith]

Bute is a type of NSAID, a group of anti-inflammatories that includes things that we take commonly, like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil).

Lasix, now Salix, is basically the brand name of the generic furosemide. Furosemide, if you've ever taken it or have some older relatives that do (you probably do), is a diuretic that can be pretty tough on the body. It is used in several capacities, but obviously its seeming effectiveness in managing EIPH in racehorses made it the standard for controlling bleeding by default.

Over the years, there have been several other drugs, most similarly used principally for another purpose originally and were ultimately found to possibly help control EIPH in racehorses. For example, aminocaproic acid (Amicar) was a pretty popular alternative or complement to Lasix in bleeders. Designed basically to control post-operative bleeding in humans, over time it became a permissible race treatment in several states, particularly in standard-bred racing.

There are several other treatments, and I'm sure even more than those in the time that I've been away, and I suspect that rather than attempt to code each new type of bleeding medication uniquely, it became much less cumbersome to sort of group them under "andjunct", basically implying that the horse is being treated for bleeding with one of several possible specific drugs.

That's my take on it - that's the way I've always viewed it. The horse is running in one of the few states that permits (well, openly permits) usage of something other than good-ole' Lasix, and he is indeed running on it. I suppose the distinction is most important when potentially comparing performances of a horse that is an adjunct user in one jurisdiction, but cannot be in another or obviously, a first-time user, or off Lasix, on adjunct - anything indicating a potential deviation from form either positive or negative.