atrial fibrillation

In response to a release on the subject of 'Equine Sudden Death Syndrome' issued by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) on Sept. 25 (TDN story), which found that atrial fibrillation (AF) was a contributing factor to equine sudden death, Eric Hamelback, CEO of the National HPBA, called the findings into question in a statement of his own on Oct. 8, declaring that the HISA statement 'raised more questions than answers' and 'offered no scientific references, and provided no direct link to the alleged research behind their claims, even...

A HISA pilot program released results from a study of advanced cardiac monitoring of Thoroughbreds that shows atrial fibrillation (AF)--traditionally considered a benign, performance-limiting condition--can worsen during exercise, cause a more severe arrhythmia that leads to sudden death, according to a press release from HISA on Thursday. The group said that electrocardiogram data from affected horses that displayed AF both at rest and under exertion, underscores the need for early detection and highlighs the potential of integrating routine cardiac screening into pre-training and pre-race evaluations. During the first six months...

2021 Japanese Horse of the Year Efforia (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}--Katie's Heart {Jpn}, by Heart's Cry {Jpn}) has been retired from racing and will take up stallion duty at Shadai Stallion Station, owner U Carrot Farm announced on their website. The 5-year-old was pulled up in Sunday's G2 Kyoto Kinen with atrial fibrillation, and, although a Monday morning electrocardiogram showed no abnormalities, the decision was made to retire the 2021 Japanese Champion 3-Year-Old Colt. Bred by Northern Farm, the colt won his two juvenile starts for trainer Yuichi Shikato in 2020,...