Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Association for Equine Sports Medicine The 1999 AESM meeting will be held in Reno, Nevada, September
30 to October 3.The focus of this meeting will be "The Effects of Transport Stress in the Horse" plus a broad range of sports medicine topics. In addition, the Reno meeting is to be held at the time of the 1999 Snaffle Bit Futurity.
AESM will hold its 2000 annual meeting in Sydney, Australia on February 21-25. The title of this combined meeting is "The Equine Athlete: The Olympic Way."
Holly Green has been appointed as the new Executive Director for AESM.
Heat and humidity acclimation
Dr. David Marlin, et al., recently published their findings from four studies of acclimation and acclimatization (acclimation= becoming accustomed to an artificially created environment; acclimatization= becoming accustomed to a natural environment) of horses to hot, humid conditions, as follows:
�9 Does not alter VO2max. �9 Results in a reduction of resting body temperature. �9 Sweat losses are reduced. �9 Plasma volume remains unchanged in the majority of horses. �9 Heat storage may be increased or decreased. �9 Affects become apparent by five to 10 days. �9 Passive exposure is not essential for acclimation. �9 Horses may be able to tolerate higher temperatures afterwards. �9 Partially restores the reduction in performance seen in
unacclimatized horses. The researchers made a number of recommendations for horsemen
competing in hot and humid weather. �9 The majority of horses are likely to benefit from a period of
acclimatization to hot, humid conditions before competing. �9 For unacclimatized horses, the risk of developing severe
dehydration, heat stress, heat exhaustion and related medical conditions is greater.
�9 Training in hot, dry conditions prior to departure may offer some benefit but is unlikely to fully prepare horses for competing in a hot, humid environment.
�9 Effective acclimatizaton is likely to take place after approximately 14 days of training.
�9 Begin acclimatization training by exercising lightly and early in the morning. Progress to more intense exercise in the late morning.
�9 Monitor rectal temperture and water int',~ke morning and evening and before and after exercise.
�9 A small percentage of horses may show an adverse reaction to acclimatizaton. This could include little or no improvement in heat tolerance after 10 days; reduction or loss of sweating ability despite high body temperature (anhidrosis); large increases or decreases in water intake; marked weight loss; and reduced feed intake.
Volume 19, Number 4, 1999
For more information contact: AESM Holly Green 3579 E. Foothill Blvd.#288 Pasadena, CA 91107 (909) 869-4859
From International Journal of Sports Medicine, Supplement 2
255
::ilil; ~' :::�9
~ ;~)~ i~i 
