FEI does not plan to change the information on Triamcinolone

Josch Löhden told EQUI PAGES that he had allowed eleven days to pass between injecting his horse EIC Schabernack with the drug and the start in Basel, although only seven days are specified as the detection time. The drug was injected “for joint care” and not as a performance-enhancing measure, Löhden emphasized.

When it became known that he had been disqualified in Basel and thus lost the greatest success of his career to date, the victory in the Golden Drum, many colleagues approached him and explained that the problem with the preparation was known, Löhden said. He also said he remembered that the FEI was discussing adjusting the waiting period for Triamcinolone. We had asked the FEI whether this was true.

Statement FEI

To cut a long story short, no, that’s not true. In fact, there are no requests to adjust the detection time for Triamcinolone, explained an FEI spokesperson. Accordingly, the FEI has no plans in this direction.

They also went into more detail about how to deal with the substance:

“The FEI publishes a detection time for Triamcinolone acetonide. This detection time indicates the approximate period during which a drug (or its metabolite) is detectable in the body of a horse and serves only as a guide. The withdrawal period must be determined by the attending veterinarian and is usually based on the detection time plus a safety margin. This safety margin should be determined taking into account individual differences between horses (e.g. size, metabolism, fitness level, recent illnesses) and professional judgment.

In addition to complying with the waiting period after treatment with Triamcinolone acetonide, the responsible persons (usually the riders, editor’s note) can have voluntary doping tests carried out. The FEI’s voluntary doping control service enables FEI-registered horses to be tested for the controlled drugs on the list of substances to be tested. These tests are carried out at any of the FEI-approved laboratories and can help determine whether a horse has metabolized a substance after treatment.”

The instructions therefore also apply to other products that fall under the heading “Controlled Medication”.

FN specifies safety margin

While the World Equestrian Federation leaves the use of medication in sport horses largely to the discretion of the riders or veterinarians, the FN takes a different approach. When specifying the withdrawal period, it takes into account the elimination time and the respective properties of the substance in question and then adds a safety margin to the equation. In the case of triamcinolone, for example, it arrives at the FEI’s eight times longer withdrawal period of 56 days.