Cartrophen

[Roseanne]

Hello - I have posted question twice about the drug Cartrophen for Navicular, and so far have had no response. Since a couple of other questions of a veterinary nature have been answered, I wondered if Cartrophen is too controversial a drug in the UK, and any vets amongst the members are reluctant to comment? I really do need some opinions about the drug, so please, if anyone has used it for their horse, could they please post? Thank you again.

Roseanne

[chev]

Maybe no-one here's used it?

I Googled it for you, and came up with these two - don't know if it helps any. It seems it's used more for joint problems, and so far opinion seems to be that it has limited efficacy in navicular - but if you type Cartrophen navicular into Google you'll get lots of results, including some discussion on other boards from people who do have hands-on experience of using it. Hope these help. :)

http://www.vets4pets.com.au/Templates/StoryTemplate_Process.cfm?specie=Horses&story_no=1293

http://www.arthritis.au.com/htm/vet_01.htm

[Roseanne]

Thank you Chev! I much appreciate your help and will get onto sites you mentioned right away. :)

Best Wishes

Roseanne

[Mehitabel]

i've never heard of it - never had to deal with navicular. i don't think we have any vets among our current active members?

[chev]

Not since ponyvet stopped coming here I don't think.

Cartrophen (according to what I read :hail: Google!!) has up until now been prescribed for cats and dogs - it's fairly new in the equine world. It's also a drug used mainly for joint problems (mainly arthritis) not navicular although some vets are using it to treat navicular too. General information suggests it's not actually that helpful in navicular cases, although for vets to be using it there must be some indications that it works, albeit in a few cases.

[Roseanne]

Thanks replies regarding above-I accessed G Site and from that also understand that Cartrophen not usually used for Navicular. I had previously got onto a few sites which more or less said same thing, so I was not sure why my vet suggested it.

Anyway, my mare is due to have shockwave again soon for suspensory problems so I will ask my vet again, why she felt Cartrophen was worth trying. She actually wanted me to carry on with it, but I felt a bit uneasy about using such a powerful drug, when what I had read did not seem to warrant its usage for Navicular.

Anyway, thanks again. I appreciate all replies.

Roseanne

[Big Ears]

i've never heard of it but then I've never had to deal with navicular.