Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Transdermal phenobarbital in healthy cats shows low blood levels
By Krull, Daniel P et al.Ā·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital AssociationĀ·2019Ā·From the Department of Veterinary Clinical Studies, United StatesĀ·View original on PubMed ā
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Original publication title: Evaluation of Transdermal Administration of Phenobarbital in Healthy Cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of healthy cats received a new transdermal gel containing phenobarbital, a medication often used for seizures, to see if it could safely reach effective levels in their blood. The cats were given the gel every 12 hours for two weeks, and while the treatment was generally safe with only mild side effects, the medication levels in their blood were lower than expected. This means that while the gel is a potential option for delivering phenobarbital, it may not be strong enough to treat conditions like seizures without careful monitoring.
People also search for: cat seizure treatment Ā· phenobarbital for cats Ā· transdermal medication for cats
Abstract
The purpose was to determine the safety and achievable serum concentrations of transdermally administered phenobarbital in healthy cats. The hypothesis was that transdermal phenobarbital would achieve therapeutic serum concentrations (15-45 µg/mL) with minimal short-term adverse effects. Enrolled cats had normal physical and neurologic exams and unremarkable bloodwork. Transdermal phenobarbital in a pluronic lecithin organogel-based vehicle was administered at a dosage of 3.0-3.1 mg/kg per ear pinna (total of 6.0-6.2 mg/kg) every 12 hr for 14 days. Serum phenobarbital concentrations were measured 3-6 hr after dosing at seven different times over 15 days. The mean and median serum concentration of phenobarbital at study completion were 5.57 and 4.08 µg/mL, respectively. Mean peak concentration and mean time to peak concentration were 5.94 µg/mL and 13.3 days, respectively. Mild adverse effects were observed. Potency was analyzed in three replicates of the transdermal phenobarbital gel administered; potencies ranged from 62.98 to 82.02%. Transdermal application of phenobarbital in healthy cats achieves a detectable, but subtherapeutic, serum concentration and appears safe in the short term. The use of therapeutic drug monitoring is recommended when this formulation of phenobarbital is used to ensure therapeutic serum concentrations are achieved.
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Search related cases āOriginal publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30427717/