High Potency And Safety Of Pyrocam® 15 mg/ml Oral Suspension (Meloxicam)

Lieven Claerhout

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are used to relieve pain, reduce inflammation and bring down high temperatures. Their mode of action is described in Figure 1.

Inhibition of cyclooxygenase (COX) is the common mode of action of NSAIDs. Cyclooxygenase induces prostaglandin production. COX-1 and COX-2 are two isoforms provoking different effects. NSAIDs relieve inflammation, fever and pain by inhibiting the activity of COX-2 but they may also impact COX-1 to a certain extent.

 

Figure 1. Mode of action of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)

 

Pyrocam® (meloxicam) is a selective inhibitor of COX-2 which results in: 

  • Excellent beneficial actions against:
    • inflammation
    • fever
    • pain
  • High safety margins

Table 1 compares the main activities of meloxicam, other NSAIDs and paracetamol following oral use.

 

Table 1. Main activities of meloxicam, other NSAIDs and paracetamol following oral use: üüüü = excellent; üüü = good; üü = medium; ü = low; - = no effect

 

 

Comparative trial

The efficacy of Pyrocam 15 mg/ml Oral Suspension (meloxicam) was investigated at a Belgian research institute. 40-day-old pigs of 10 kg bodyweight (BW) were allocated to five groups of eight pigs. Pigs were treated via single oral gavage: 

  • T1: control group
  • T2: 0.4 mg Pyrocam/kg BW (registered dose)
  • T3: 0.8 mg Pyrocam/kg BW
  • T4: 35 mg sodium salicylate/kg BW
  • T5: 30 mg paracetamol/kg BW

Six hours after oral gavage, the pigs were intravenously challenged with 10 µg lipopolysaccharide (LPS) / kg BW to evoke fever immediately afterwards. Three parameters were measured: 

 

1. The mean body temperature at the peak of fever was compared to the baseline temperature to calculate the mean body temperature increase (MBTI). The antipyretic effect was determined by comparing the MBTI reduction to the control group (Figure 2).

 

Figure 2. Change in mean body temperature over time

 

→ Pyrocam had a significant antipyretic effect at the two dose levels (* = 0.018, ** p = 0.015, *** = 0.040).

→ There was no significant reduction in MBTI in the sodium salicylate or the paracetamol group.

 

2. Appetite was evaluated based on the percentage of pigs consuming feed (Figure 3). 

 

Figure 3. Percentage of animals consuming feed over time

 

→ Pigs treated with Pyrocam started feed consumption sooner post-challenge compared to the sodium salicylate and paracetamol groups.

 

3. The mean composite clinical score, representing the sum of scores from the following eight parameters (score 0-1 for each) was determined: appetite, vomiting, nausea, shivering, coughing, salivation, depression and respiratory pattern (Figure 4).

 

Figure 4. Mean composite clinical score over time

 

→ Pigs treated with Pyrocam showed a much faster and better recovery.

 

Conclusion

Pyrocam 15 mg Oral Suspension (meloxicam) has: 

  • a mode of action which is completely different from other NSAIDs and paracetamol:
    • High potency against inflammation, fever and pain
    • High safety margins
  • superior efficacy at the registered dose of 0.4 mg/kg BW compared to sodium salicylate and paracetamol, resulting in a faster return to appetite and clinical recovery.

References are available on request.

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