Study gives first PK data for ertugliflozin in horses

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A new paper in Veterinary Sciences reports the first pharmacokinetic data for enteral ertugliflozin in horses, filling in a key evidence gap for a drug that's already being used in equine practice for hyperinsulinaemia. In the study, Naomi C. Kirkwood, Kris Hughes, and Amy L. Lovett gave a single supratherapeutic oral dose of 0.25 mg/kg to eight healthy horses and found rapid absorption, with a mean time to peak concentration of about 0.9 hours, a mean peak concentration of 267.5 ng/mL, and a terminal half-life of 17.7 hours. The authors said the findings support once-daily dosing, while also noting that the work was done in healthy horses at a higher-than-typical clinical dose. (mdpi.com)

Why it matters: For equine veterinarians, the study gives a pharmacokinetic foundation for a medication that's been adopted largely on clinical experience, case series, and extrapolation rather than formal dosing data. That matters because ertugliflozin and other SGLT2 inhibitors are being used to manage insulin dysregulation and hyperinsulinaemia-associated laminitis, where retrospective and case-series data have suggested meaningful reductions in insulin concentrations and clinical improvement, but also identified monitoring concerns including rises in triglycerides and other lipid changes. In one 2025 retrospective case series, horses treated with ertugliflozin or dapagliflozin showed lower insulin concentrations by day 30, while 21% had triglycerides above 2.0 mmol/L, underscoring the need for case selection and follow-up testing. (sciencedirect.com)

What to watch: The next step is whether controlled clinical studies in insulin-dysregulated horses can link these pharmacokinetic findings to optimized dose selection, safety monitoring, and real-world laminitis outcomes. (mdpi.com)