Take Home Message

Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome (EGUS) and Right Dorsal Colitis (RDC) are common in performance horses. Diagnoses are based on history, clinical signs, laboratory findings, gastroscopic examination, and response to altered diet and medical therapy. Effective treatment strategies for EGUS focus on increasing stomach pH by inhibiting or buffering gastric acid, which allows a permissive environment for ulcer healing, and environmental and dietary management. Effective treatment strategies for RDC focus on removing non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), decreasing the bulk in the diet, reducing inflammation, coating and lubricating the colon and decreasing environmental stress. Prevention of these conditions requires long-term dietary and environmental management. Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome Gastric ulcers are common in performance horses. The term Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome (EGUS) was coined to describe the condition of erosions and ulcerations occurring in the distal esophagus, non-glandular and glandular stomach, and proximal duodenum of horses.1 EGUS is caused by many factors including anatomy of the stomach, exercise, restricted feed intake, diet, environmental stress (stall or transport), and the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents.2 Diagnosis of EGUS is based on history, clinical signs, endoscopic examination, and response to treatment. All ages and breeds of horses are susceptible to EGUS and current therapeutic strategies focus on blocking gastric acid secretion and raising stomach pH to ≥ 4.0. To date there is only one Federal Drug Administration (FDA) approved pharmacologic agent for treatment of EGUS; GastroGard ® (Merial Limited, Duluth, GA). However, a more comprehensive approach to EGUS diagnosis and treatment includes determining and correcting of the underlying cause, environmental management, dietary manipulation, and pharmacologic intervention