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| White horse courtesy of morguefile |
What do horses have to do with gout?
Not much, unless you tend to overindulge in The White Horse pub, but there is a link.
The nice thing about having a gout news page, is that you often spot interesting news items. My attention was drawn to “Research Into Why Common Anti-Inflammatory Drugs Harm Intestines”.
Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs, commonly called NSAIDs, play a significant role in managing acute gout (see acute gout management chart), but they cause stomach problems for many. As you may know, I seem to tolerate NSAIDs pretty well, but who knows if I am at risk, but have not yet had any side-effects. Many other gout sufferers are not so lucky
I nearly turned away when I read that this was research by Kansas State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and that the research would benefit horses and other animals that require NSAIDs for ailments related to their athletic activities. Animals and athletics - not much interest for me then, until I spotted a quote from the research leader:
“We treat horses the same way we treat humans, and horses get the same side effects,” Lillich said.
So, although uric acid metabolism in horses is different from humans, they still suffer the same pain from inflammation that gout patients do. NSAIDs for pain relief have the same effects on horses as they do on gout sufferers. So any benefits from this research will help us gouty folk as well. And there are some benefits…
Lillich said the research he is doing at K-State will lead to better treatment for patients requiring nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
“What we’re trying to do is get better at drug design,” Lillich said. “… Manufacturers will be able to make a drug with fewer harmful side effects.”
Great news for gout sufferers everywhere. And horses.
Tags: nsaids research, _anti inflammatories, _pain relief
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