Abstract
BackgroundNon-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are used routinely to control pain and inflammation after surgery in dogs. Robenacoxib is a new NSAID with high selectivity for the cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-2 isoform of COX. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of robenacoxib for the management of peri-operative pain and inflammation associated with soft tissue surgery in dogs. The study was a prospective, randomized, blinded, positive-controlled, non-inferiority, multi-center clinical trial. A total of 174 dogs undergoing major soft tissue surgery were included and randomly allocated in a 2:1 ratio to receive either robenacoxib (n = 118) or the positive control, meloxicam (n = 56). Each dog received an initial dose subcutaneously prior to surgery (robenacoxib 2 mg/kg, meloxicam 0.2 mg/kg), followed by daily oral doses (robenacoxib 1–2 mg/kg, meloxicam 0.1 mg/kg) for 12 days (range 10–14) after surgery. Pain and inflammation were assessed subjectively using the Glasgow Composite Pain Scale (GCPS) by clinicians as the primary end point and additional evaluations by the clinicians and animal owners as secondary endpoints.ResultsBoth treatments provided similar pain control, with no significant differences between groups for any efficacy variable using non-parametric analyses (Mann–Whitney U test). In no dog was analgesic rescue therapy administered. Non-inferior efficacy of robenacoxib compared to meloxicam was demonstrated statistically for the primary and all secondary endpoints using parametric analysis of variance, although the data were not normally distributed even after log transformation. For the primary endpoint (reciprocal of the modified GCPS score), the relative efficacy of robenacoxib/meloxicam was 1.12 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.97-1.29.Both treatments were well tolerated and did not affect buccal mucosal bleeding time.ConclusionA treatment regimen of robenacoxib by subcutaneous injection followed by oral tablets had good tolerability and non-inferior efficacy compared to meloxicam for the management of peri-operative pain and inflammation associated with soft tissue surgery in dogs.
Highlights
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are used routinely to control pain and inflammation after surgery in dogs
Unless stated all reported results refer to the “intentionto-treat” population, which consisted of all 174 dogs which were randomized into one of the two groups, and for which at least one post-treatment result was available
There were no significant differences between groups in the pre-surgery variables or surgery data except for duration of surgery which was significantly longer (P = 0.037) in the robenacoxib group (Table 3)
Summary
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are used routinely to control pain and inflammation after surgery in dogs. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of robenacoxib for the management of peri-operative pain and inflammation associated with soft tissue surgery in dogs. A total of 174 dogs undergoing major soft tissue surgery were included and randomly allocated in a 2:1 ratio to receive either robenacoxib (n = 118) or the positive control, meloxicam (n = 56). Soft tissue surgical procedures in the dog are associated with post-operative pain and peri-operative analgesia is recommended in many cases [1,2]. Robenacoxib is a new NSAID with several properties of interest for use in dogs undergoing surgery, including a fast onset of action and the availability of both injection and oral formulations [4]. The efficacy and tolerability of robenacoxib has been demonstrated in dogs undergoing orthopedic surgery [8]
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