What is Equine Metabolic Syndrome
Equine metabolic syndrome can be defined as a collection of risk factors that are associated with an increased susceptibility to laminitis. Characteristically these are obesity, patchy accumulation of fat, laminitis and insulin resistance.
Diagnosis of Insulin resistance is difficult because insulin levels are affected by a huge number of factors including diet, exercise, pain, stress, illness or Cushings. The gold standard method is not practical for regular use but there are a number of other methods available. The most commonly used for practical reasons is a single blood sample taken after an overnight fast to test for high resting insulin (Resting hyperinsulinaemia).
However, a normal or low resting insulin does not necessarily rule out insulin resistance. If a horse is displaying a number of other signs of EMS a glucose challenge test can be performed. A measured amount of glucose is fed following a 12 hour fast and a blood sample is taken 2 hours later. Horses with IR are likely to have an excessively high insulin level and/or a delayed return to normal blood glucose levels.
If EMS is identified in your horse it is very manageable with dietry changes with or without the addition of medicines such as levothyroxine sodium or metformin to increase insulin sensitivity.
The goals of treatment and management are:
- Induce weight loss in obese horses
- Improve insulin sensitivity through weight loss, diet and exercise
- Avoid dietary triggers for laminitis
