Secnidazole for the treatment of giardiasis in naturally infected cats

Abstract Giardia duodenalis causes enteric infections in humans and animals worldwide. Inefficiency of metronidazole is commonly reported in the veterinary clinic routine in the treatment of giardiasis in dogs and cats. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of secnidazole in the control...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Parasitology international 2011-12, Vol.60 (4), p.429-432
Main Authors: Da Silva, Aleksandro S, Castro, Verônica S.P, Tonin, Alexandre A, Brendler, Sabrina, Costa, Marcio M, Jaques, Jeandre A, Bertoletti, Bianca, Zanette, Régis A, Raiser, Alceu G, Mazzanti, Cinthia M, Lopes, Sonia T.A, Monteiro, Silvia G
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
adverse effects
Animals
Antiprotozoal Agents - administration & dosage
Antiprotozoal Agents - therapeutic use
Biochemical parameters
Blood Chemical Analysis
Brazil
Cat Diseases - drug therapy
Cat Diseases - parasitology
Cats
disease control
dogs
enzymes
feces
Feces - parasitology
Feline
Female
Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Giardia
Giardia duodenalis
Giardia lamblia
Giardia lamblia - drug effects
Giardia lamblia - physiology
giardiasis
Giardiasis - drug therapy
Giardiasis - parasitology
Giardiasis - veterinary
Hemogram
Humans
Infectious Disease
liver
metronidazole
Metronidazole - administration & dosage
Metronidazole - analogs & derivatives
Metronidazole - therapeutic use
Parasite Load
parasites
parasitology
poisoning
Secnidazole
Treatment Outcome
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Summary:Abstract Giardia duodenalis causes enteric infections in humans and animals worldwide. Inefficiency of metronidazole is commonly reported in the veterinary clinic routine in the treatment of giardiasis in dogs and cats. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of secnidazole in the control of infection caused by G. duodenalis in naturally infected cats. For this purpose two experiments were carried out. In the first experiment seven cats were infected with G. duodenalis and treated orally with a single dose of secnidazole (30 mg kg−1 ). In the second experiment a total of 16 cats were used, 11 naturally infected with G. duodenalis and five negative for the parasite. Animals were divided into three groups: group A ( n = 5) was composed by non-infected animals (negative control), group B ( n = 5) consisted of infected but untreated animals and group C ( n = 6) was composed by cats treated orally with a single dose of secnidazole (30 mg kg−1 ). Hematological and biochemical parameters were evaluated before and after treatment. The first experiment reached 100% of efficacy because no cysts were found in the feces after treatment. However, doubts about intoxication and interference with hematological and biochemical parameters came to light. No side effects were observed, and the biochemical and hematological parameters of treated animals remained within physiological range, except for one feline which had elevation of liver enzymes. Based on these results, the utilization of secnidazole could be suggested for the treatment of giardiasis in cats. The main advantage of this treatment is that only a single dose is required, which is interesting in animals hard to handle like cats.
ISSN:1383-5769
1873-0329
DOI:10.1016/j.parint.2011.06.024