More on the New EPM Treatment

(Revised 12/5/03) Horse owners have a new option for treating equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) following the Nov. 19 U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of nitazoxanide. This medication has been under development

Share
Favorite
Close

No account yet? Register

ADVERTISEMENT

(Revised 12/5/03) Horse owners have a new option for treating equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) following the Nov. 19 U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of nitazoxanide. This medication has been under development as an EPM treatment for more than six years.

IDEXX Laboratories of Westbrook, Maine, received approval for the product, called Navigator, which is a 32% nitazoxanide antiprotozoal oral paste designed to kill the single-celled protozoan parasite Sarcocystis neurona, which infests the horse and causes EPM. (Read more on EPM at www.TheHorse.com/epm.)


Navigator is the second FDA-approved treatment to hit the equine market–Bayer’s Marquis (active ingredient ponazuril), another antiprotozoal oral paste, was the first FDA-approved EPM drug to be launched (August 2001). An additional type of treatment, diclazuril, awaits FDA approval.


Also in November 2003, Dorsey Kordick, PhD, of IDEXX laboratories based in Greensboro, N.C., gave a scientific presentation on Navigator’s safety and efficacy studies at the University of Kentucky Gluck Equine Research Center in Lexington, Ky. She explained that the treatment regimen lasts 28 days, and it begins with five days of half-strength doses, providing “a more gradual kill” of the parasite to allow intestinal microflora to adjust to the drug, and minimize the transient neurological worsening sometimes seen with extreme immune system stimulation (by numerous dead parasites). The horse should receive the dose once daily, just before he receives his grain concentrate.


Navigator’s mechanism of action shuts down cellular respiration of S. Neurona and works with the horse’s immune system to eliminate the parasite. Its cost to veterinarians should be comparable to other EPM treatments available

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.

Share

Written by:

Stephanie L. Church, Editorial Director, grew up riding and caring for her family’s horses in Central Virginia and received a B.A. in journalism and equestrian studies from Averett University. She joined The Horse in 1999 and has led the editorial team since 2010. A 4-H and Pony Club graduate, she enjoys dressage, eventing, and trail riding with her former graded-stakes-winning Thoroughbred gelding, It Happened Again (“Happy”). Stephanie and Happy are based in Lexington, Kentucky.

Related Articles

Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with

FREE weekly newsletters from TheHorse.com

Sponsored Content

Weekly Poll

sponsored by:

Where do you primarily feed your horse?
309 votes · 309 answers

Readers’ Most Popular

Sign In

Don’t have an account? Register for a FREE account here.

Need to update your account?

You need to be logged in to fill out this form

Create a free account with TheHorse.com!