Abstract
Since its introduction approximately seven years ago, selamectin (Stronghold®/Revolution®, Pfizer Inc.) has been used off-label to treat a number of ecto- and endoparasite conditions in dogs and cats. It has been used as a successful prophylactic against Dirofilaria repens and as a treatment for Aelurostrongylus abstrusus in cats. It has also been used to treat notoedric mange, infestation with the nasal mite Pneumonyssoides caninum, Cheyletiella spp. and Neotrombicula autumnalis infestations and larval Cordylobia anthropophaga infection. However, to date attempts to treat generalised canine demodicosis have not been successful. In all cases, treatment was apparently well tolerated by the host.
Highlights
Until relatively recently, the antiparasitic products available to the veterinarian were often inadequate [1]
The first avermectin-based product approved for use in companion animals was a low-dosage formulation of ivermectin solely for the prevention of adult heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) infestations in dogs
Thereafter a systematic programme to evaluate avermectin analogues resulted in the discovery of the macrocyclic lactone selamectin, which was shown to have efficacy and safety profiles which warranted its commercialisation for cats and dogs [5]
Summary
The antiparasitic products available to the veterinarian were often inadequate [1]. Genchi and co-workers [13] have recently reported that the commercial formulation of selamectin administered at monthly intervals according to label recommendations to prevent the establishment of D. immitis infections in dogs living in a D. repens endemic area and exposed to a high risk of infestation, was 100% successful in preventing the establishment of D. repens infection in 65 dogs; whilst 11 of 27 (41%) untreated controls in this study were shown to be infected following the transmission season, equating to an approximate incidence rate of 0.5116 per animal season at risk. One of the most striking clinical descriptions of an ectoparasite infestation of dogs, cats and rabbits is "walking dandruff", which may be observed on pups with a heavy infestation of Cheyletiella spp This sign is caused by the movement of these rather large mites under "the branlike exfoliative debris" [20] which occurs as a result of infestation [21]. Treatment reduced the level of infestation to 0.1% by 10 days after the first treatment, and a similar low level of infestation was maintained throughout the remainder of the study, whilst 100% of dogs in the control group remained infested throughout the study
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