Veterinary Anesthetic Alfaxan Approved for U.S. DistributionAugust 14, 2014 An intravenous injectable anesthetic commonly used in Australia will be released to U.S. veterinarians Aug. 25, the manufacturer, Jurox Animal Health, reported. Alfaxan (alfaxalone 10 mg/mL) is approved for use in cats and dogs. The drug is indicated for the induction and maintenance of anesthesia and for the induction of anesthesia followed by maintenance with an inhalant anesthetic. Winning U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of Alfaxan took time, said JJ O’Brien, CEO of Australia-based Jurox. “Since beginning this process, we have had countless inquiries as to why it has not been available to U.S. veterinarians,” O’Brien said. The drug is widely accepted by Australian veterinarians and has been used in 20 countries. “An independent study commissioned by Jurox reported Australian veterinarians to rely on Alfaxan for induction as often as 74 percent of the time in cats and 52 percent in dogs,” the company stated. Alfaxan’s U.S. distributors will include Henry Schein Animal Health, MWI Veterinary Supply, Patterson Veterinary Supply, NEVSCo, Midwest Veterinary Supply and Victor Medical Co. Jurox earlier this summer opened its U.S. headquarters in Kansas City, Mo.
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Secrets Of Feline Tooth ExtractionAugust 13, 2014 In this article, we will discuss feline surgical extractions, including tips and tricks that will make your next feline dental extraction easier. Flaps Are Our Friends! When I speak with general practitioners about extraction of firmly rooted feline teeth, sometimes they will begin the conversation with a confession: “We don’t do flaps here.” To this I will pose an analogy. Trying to extract large, firmly rooted feline premolar, molar or canine teeth without a flap is analogous to trying to catch a football with one arm tied behind your back. It can be done, but not reliably, and not without much frustration. For our discussion today, let’s use the scenario of a feline patient whose right mandibular cheek teeth need to be extracted [third premolar (407), fourth premolar (408) and first molar (409) teeth]. This raises an important point about extraction of adjacent teeth. If you identify a tooth that needs to be extracted, assess the adjacent teeth to determine if these teeth also need to be extracted. If so, rather than raising multiple flaps for each individual tooth, a single flap can be raised to extract multiple teeth. John r. …
Alabama, Louisiana Lead Nation in Heartworm DiseaseAugust 8, 2014 Blame the mosquitoes first, but dog owners share responsibility for Alabama having the highest rate of heartworm disease in the nation in 2013, the American Heartworm Society reported Wednesday. Alabama veterinary hospitals and animal shelters each diagnosed an average of 90 heartworm-positive dogs in 2013, compared to 31 per site in 2010. Those gloomy numbers easily topped No. 2 Louisiana’s figure of 81 heartworm-positive dogs per clinic. The good news for Louisiana is that the state was first in heartworm disease three years earlier—the last time the study was conducted—when it had 105 heartworm-positive dogs per clinic. The Wilmington, Del.-based American Heartworm Society stressed that heartworm disease is easily preventable when dogs and cats receive a monthly medication. “We know that far too many pets in Alabama are affected with heartworm disease,” said Chris Rehm, DVM, an American Heartworm Society board member who practices in Mobile, Ala. “However, we also know that veterinarians and pet owners have the power to prevent this deadly disease.” Heartworm disease is spread by mosquitoes and is found in all 50 states, but the threat tends to be worse in warm-weather locations, especially the Southeast. The top …
Veterinarian Saves Kitten’s LifeAugust 6, 2014 Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. CIOLI/I5 STUDIO A black kitten clung to life after being abused by its owner. Found with a rope tied around its neck, presumably dragged by a car or thrown to the ground, the small creature was lifeless. Several of its teeth were knocked out and its face was bleeding. Authorities rushed the helpless animal to HOPE Veterinary Clinic in Malvern, Pennsylvania. Jennifer Magilton, VMD, was on hand to care for the kitten. Upon examining the feline, Dr. Magilton concluded it was suffering from trauma to the head and was unresponsive and lethargic. The first conclusion was euthanasia. Further examination revealed the kitten had ingested heroin. Magilton quickly gave the kitten Narcan, a drug for reviving humans having a drug overdose. The kitten’s condition improved immediately. Had heroin not been in the kitten’s system, Narcan, also known as naloxene, would have had no effect. James Myers, the kitten’s owner, is being charged with drug possession and animal cruelty. He is currently being held at Chester County Prison. The kitten is still recovering at HOPE Veterinary Clinic. Once fully recovered, it will …
Elanco, FDA Say Trifexis Played No Role in Dog DeathsAugust 5, 2014 Trifexis, a flea killer and heartworm preventive introduced in 2011, is being blamed for nearly 1,000 dog deaths, but both the manufacturer and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cautioned that no evidence has been found tying the drug to the claims. Atlanta television station WSB learned after filing a Freedom of Information Act request that the FDA had received 965 complaints of Trifexis-related dog deaths. Pet owners have debated the drug’s safety on multiple websites and even started a Facebook page called Does Trifexis Kill Dogs? FDA, which approves and regulates human and animal drugs, acknowledged that dog owners and veterinarians have lodged formal complaints about Trifexis (spinosad and milbemycin oxime). “FDA is aware of adverse event reports in connection with Trifexis and continues to closely monitor them,” the agency reported in a prepared statement. “It is very important to realize that reports of adverse events do not necessarily mean that the product caused the event. Other factors, such as existing disease, exposure to chemicals or contaminants, foods, or other medications may have triggered or contributed to the cause of the event.” WSB-TV also reported in late July that 1,500 Trifexis complaints were …
CAPC Urges Additional Heartworm TestsAugust 4, 2014 The Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) has updated its heartworm guidelines to recommend that a microfilariae test be performed annually on all dogs in addition to the customary antigen test and that veterinarians consider administering tests twice a year in heartworm-prevalent areas. Reports of an increasing number of false-negative antigen results led the Salem, Ore., organization to modify the guidelines July 28 after a meeting of the American Association of Veterinary Parasitologists. Some dogs appeared to have developed immune complexes that led to a rising number of false negatives involving commercial antigen tests. “Some of the CAPC parasitology specialists speculate that one of the reasons for the increase in these false-negative test results may be related to the practice of placing heartworm-infected dogs on long-term regimens of macrocyclic lactone preventives and antibiotics rather than treating them with an approved adulticide,” the organization stated. The combination treatment, known as the slow-kill method, came into favor with some veterinarians because of an ongoing shortage of Immiticide, an adulticide manufactured by Merial Ltd. Dogs managed with these protocols may experience prolonged inflammation, which could result in the formation of immune complexes that mask the detection …
Liposuction For Pets: Procedure Becoming Increasingly PopularJuly 31, 2014 Follow Veterinary Practice News on Twitter at @vetpetnews. Our society is a bit obsessed with appearance. Countless ads pop up on radio, television and in magazines promoting breast augmentations, anti-aging creams and countless ways to lose weight (through exercise, weight-loss programs, special diets, medications and surgeries). One such option is liposuction. The ad may show a woman with a not-so-flat belly next to a picture of one with a toned stomach, telling people that liposuction was the answer. So when I saw in the news that liposuction was now available for pets, I thought our society had gone too far. But, like everything else, you have to read the fine print. Although referred to as liposuction, when the procedure is performed on pets it is not cosmetic (even if your client’s pet is hoping for a svelte figure). It’s actually used to improve the health of the pet. The non-invasive procedure removes the fat from lipomas in overweight and senior dogs. If gone untreated, they can grow quite large and impede the dog’s movement. “They can be really big,” Rebecca Pentecost, DVM, told Fox 8 Cleveland. …
Avivagen Explores Possible Breakthrough in Female SterilizationJuly 30, 2014 A Canadian animal health company wants to do for female dogs and cats what Ark Sciences Inc. is doing for male dogs. Ark Sciences this year began shipping to veterinarians an FDA-approved nonsurgical sterilization drug, Zeuterin Injectable Solution, that is formulated to permanently cease canine sperm production. Seizing an opportunity on the female side, Avivagen Inc. of Ottawa, Ontario, is partnering with University of Saskatchewan veterinarian Duncan Hockley, DVM, who invented what the company calls a drug-based alternative to surgical spaying. The agreement puts Avivagen first in line for an exclusive license to a technology designed for the permanent sterilization of female mammals, starting with dogs and cats and potentially extending to livestock, wild animals and even humans. The technology, which for now goes by the name “Sterilis Project,” is a long way from hitting the veterinary market. Avivagen hopes to finish proof-of-concept work by year’s end and at some point launch trial studies. “We estimate that a nonresource-constrained project could attain registration in about five years, absent technical hurdles and delays in reviews,” said Avivagen’s CEO and president, Cameron Groome. How the “Sterilis Project” drug would work on females is …
Humane Alliance Spay/Neuter School ExpandsJuly 30, 2014 A clinic designed to teach spay and neuter procedures to hundreds of veterinarians and fourth-year veterinary students each year opened Tuesday in Asheville, N.C. The Humane Alliance Spay/Neuter Training Center, which was funded through a $1.5 million grant from PetSmart Charities, features six surgical bays and enough kennels to accommodate 140 feline and canine patients. The host, Humane Alliance, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching high-volume, low-cost sterilization techniques. “The support of PetSmart Charities allows us to increase the number of veterinarians who will take back new skills to their community to save more pets and make an impact nationwide,” said Quita Mazzina, executive director of Humane Alliance. The 12,400-square-foot training center includes office space for 16 staff members. A separate, 2,200-square-foot dormitory houses up to 20 students. PetSmart Charities, the charitable arm of the Phoenix-based PetSmart chain, has given more than $4.5 million to Humane Alliance since 2010. “When organizations come together and collaborate as we’ve done with Humane Alliance, the results can be transformational,” said Julie White, the charity’s senior director of programs, grants and field initiatives. Humane Alliance has helped create a network of 137 low-cost
3-Year Nonadjuvanted Rabies Vaccine Available for CatsJuly 29, 2014 Merial Ltd. has released what the Duluth, Ga., drug maker is calling the world’s first nonadjuvanted feline rabies vaccine with a three-year lifespan. Other three-year rabies vaccines are made with an adjuvant that increases a cat’s immune response but that has been blamed for causing vaccine-related fibrosarcoma, a rare disease. The new vaccine is part of the PureVax family, which includes a one-year nonadjuvanted rabies vaccine. “The recombinant technology that has also been used to produce other vaccines such as the one-year PureVax rabies … allows the development of effective vaccines for feline viral diseases without the need for adjuvants,” said Leigh O’Mara, Ph.D., PMP, an associate director of technical marketing for Merial. The three-year duration of immunity makes the vaccine a good choice for cat owners who don’t schedule regular veterinary checkups, Merial stated. “Veterinarians now no longer have to choose between a multiyear adjuvanted rabies vaccine and an annual nonadjuvanted rabies vaccine for clients who do not reliably return to the clinic annually,” the company reported Monday. PureVax Feline Rabies is recommended for healthy cats 12 weeks or older. A one-year booster vaccination is required after the initial shot. Rabies …
