Comparison of aloe vera and omeprazole in the treatment of equine gastric ulcer syndrome

Abstract

Methods: Forty horses with grade ≥2 lesions of the squamous and/or glandular mucosa were randomly assigned to one of 2 groups. Horses received either aloe vera inner leaf gel (17.6 mg/kg bwt) twice daily or omeprazole (4 mg/kg) once daily for approximately 28 days, after which a repeat gastroscopic examination was performed to determine disease resolution. Horses with persistent lesions were offered a further 28 days of treatment with omeprazole (4 mg/kg bwt once daily) and were re-examined on completion of treatment. Results: Efficacy analyses were based on 39 horses that completed the trial. Equine squamous gastric disease (ESGD) was observed in 38 horses and improvement and healing rates were 56% and 17% respectively for aloe vera and 85% and 75% respectively for omeprazole. Healing was less likely to occur in horses with prolonged gastric emptying. Equine glandular gastric disease (EGGD) was less common than ESGD (n = 14) and numbers were too small to perform meaningful statistical analyses. The hypothesis that aloe vera would be non-inferior to omeprazole was not supported. Main limitations: No placebo control group was included. Limited numbers to be able to comment on efficacy of aloe vera for treatment of EGGD. Conclusions: Treatment with aloe vera was inferior to treatment with omeprazole.