Abstract

The modern veterinarian has a wide range of pharmaceuticals from which to choose in the treatment and prevention of animal diseases: antimicrobial agents, antiinflammatory agents, parasiticides, anesthetics and tranquilizers, and cancer chemotherapeutics. All are subject to governmental regulations, which vary by country. Product development takes a minimum of eight to 10 years and usually requires large sums of money. Antimicrobial therapy, older than recognition of the causes of infection, greatly expanded with the discoveries of sulfanilamide and penicillin in the 1930s and 1940s; identification of the causative organism dictates selection of the most appropriate agent. Sulfonamides, penicillins, aminoglycosides, tetracyclines, growth promoters, and antifungal agents are all used. Parasiticides include organophosphates and carbamates, avermectins, levamisole, benzimidazoles, and others. Antiinflammatory agents include aspirin, and corticosteroids and their synthetic analogues. Hormones regulate reproductive cycles, gestation, and parturition. Tranquilizers and anesthetics are used in the management of excitement in animals to avoid further injury and as restraints in surgical procedures. Cancer chemotherapy and immunostimulation provide uses for other drugs and for vaccines, respectively.