Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Are artemisinin supplements for dogs reliable and safe?
By Berman, Alyssa R et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary pharmacology and therapeutics·2025·Department of Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Analysis of US Marketed Artemisinin Supplements for Use in Dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study tested four different artemisinin supplements for dogs, which are sometimes used to help treat infections like Babesia gibsoni. The results showed that these products varied widely in their actual strength compared to what was claimed on the labels, with one product containing no artemisinin at all. This raises concerns about the safety and effectiveness of these unregulated supplements. Pet owners should be cautious and consult their veterinarian before using any of these products, as they have not been properly evaluated for quality.
People also search for: dog Babesia treatment · artemisinin supplements for dogs · dog parasite supplements safety
Abstract
Oral artemisinin has antiparasitic activity and may help improve treatment success rates in dogs infected with Babesia gibsoni. However, these artemisinin products are unapproved and unregulated botanical supplements. They have not been evaluated for safety and efficacy or for strength, purity, or quality compared with a reference standard. Before considering these products for a clinical study, we evaluated the strength of four suppliers of artemisinin capsules using an high-performance liquid chromatography method validated in our laboratory. We found that the four artemisinin-labeled products that were tested had high within product and between product variability in capsule strength compared with the stated capsule strength on the product label. No products met the acceptance criteria of the United States Pharmacopeia and International Council for Harmonisation (ICH) as well as the criteria adapted by the authors. One product had no detectable artemisinin, and the other three products were much higher than the stated label strength. The results of this study reinforce the importance of testing unapproved and unregulated supplements before recommending a supplement for clinical use in dogs.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39180470/