The Kentucky Equine Drug Research Council met Thursday at Keeneland to discuss options to identify and enforce the prohibited use of erythropoietin (EPO). The drug, commonly called EPO and marketed under the name Epogen, is suspected to be in use in horses at the racetrack, although the substance, which increases the production of red blood cells, has not been proven to enhance performance in horses. In September the Kentucky Racing Commission amended its drug policy to make EPO among its prohibited substances.

The council heard explanations of tests in the development phase that could eventually indicate a presence of EPO in blood, but still require more research. Of the three tests to determine if EPO is in use in humans, two cannot be used in horses because of their physiologic differences and it hasn’t been determined if the third can be used in a parallel way in horses.

One of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) tests, which are currently employed in Kentucky, can indicate a presence of antibodies to EPO, but according to Dr. Richard Sams of The Ohio State University, the test in its current form is not sufficient to indicate a clear positive for EPO. Sams is a consultant to the council.

“We really don’t know if it’s giving us a false suspicious positive,” said Sams