Tuesday, January 03, 2017

Algae: The Next Big Thing for Equine Lameness and OA?

Thehorse.com - Full Article

By Stacey Oke, DVM, MSc
Oct 10, 2016

Osteaoarthritis (OA) in horses is a painful condition, frequently resulting in loss of use and economic consequences. Considering there is currently no cure for OA, affected horses are often treated with “the kitchen sink,” meaning owners and even some veterinarians are willing to try just about anything to make an OA-affected horse more comfortable and to slow disease progression … including algae extracts.

“Blue-green algae contains a protein bound pigment called C-phycocyanin that possesses both anti-inflammatory and antioxidative properties and has been shown to help humans, dogs, and horses with OA in some studies,” explained Jennifer Taintor, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, from Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, in Alabama.

Because some of the currently used medications for OA are associated with potentially serious adverse reactions, researchers have focused their attention on more natural products, such as blue-green algae extracts, for ameliorating clinical signs of OA...

Read more here:
http://www.thehorse.com/articles/35446/algae-the-next-big-thing-for-equine-lameness-and-oa?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=in-depth&utm_campaign=10-15-2016

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