The objective of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of pour-on formulations of fluazuron and ivermectin in different therapeutic protocols for treatment of demodicosis by means of quantifying mites with skin scraping, histological and clinical evaluation in dogs. Eighteen dogs with skin scrapings positive for Demodex canis were evaluated, divided into three groups. All the animals were treated every 14 days, completing 6 treatments for each animal (days 0, 14, 28, 42, 56 and 70). In group 1, pour-on 2.5% fluazuron was used at the dose of 20mg/kg; in the group 2 pour-on 2.5% fluazuron at a dose of 20 mg/kg in association with pour-on 0.5% ivermectin at the dose of 0.6mg/kg; and in group 3, pour-on 0.5% ivermectin alone was used, at the dose of 0.6mg/kg. The treatment was evaluated and monitored through skin scrapings and clinical follow-up of the lesions every 14 days for 84 days, and through histopathological examination at the end of each treatment protocol. The success rate was defined as the percentage of dogs in each group that had negative skin scrapings after the treatment: this was 16.67% for group 1, and 50% for groups 2 and 3. The reduction in mite counts reached effectiveness of 67.66%, 88.99% and 84.29% for groups 1, 2 and 3 respectively. The Wilcoxon test showed that there was a significant difference between the number of mites before and after treatment in groups 2 and 3. The histopathological examination revealed that only group 1 showed no significant difference in the intensity of infestation between days 0 and 84. Clinically, there was no significant difference between the evaluation before and after treatment in the three groups. pour-on 2.5% fluazuron and pour-on 0.5% ivermectin were not effective for treating canine demodicosis, either in association or as single therapy, when applied every 14 days for a period of 70 days. Quantification of mites using skin scrapings and histological evaluation proved to be ineffective, either one as sole therapeutic evaluation parameters, for canine demodicosis.
Demodex canis; control; fluazuron; ivermectin; pour-on
