Landmark CVBD Prevention Field Study Demonstrates Benefits of Advantix(R) Spot-on Treatment for Dogs

MONHEIM, Germany, July 6, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The findings of a landmark Canine Vector Borne Disease (CVBD) prevention field study, published in Veterinary Parasitology today, showed the remarkable repelling efficacy of Advantix(R) in protecting dogs from ticks and sand flies and thereby reducing the risk of transmission from the potentially deadly diseases they spread.

This highly comprehensive study, conducted over two years by the team of Prof. Domenico Otranto of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (Universita degli Studi di Bari) Italy, with diagnostic support from the team of Dr. Edward Breitschwerdt at the North Carolina State University, USA, found that dogs treated regularly with Advantix(R) spot-on had a greater than 90% reduction in CVBD cases, including a 100% reduction in new cases of potentially deadly leishmaniosis and a 94.6% decrease in ehrlichiosis.

The study also found that Advantix(R) provided 97.9% protection against tick infestation, compared to untreated dogs, where 100% were infested at the peak of the season. The level of protection offered by Advantix(R) was all the more notable because of the particularly large numbers of ticks and sand flies and high prevalence of associated diseases like leishmaniosis or babesiosis in the area of the study.

According to Prof. Otranto, "Our study shows the importance of protecting dogs with an effective treatment that repels as well as kills parasites like ticks and sand flies. Despite the high challenge faced by the dogs in our study, nearly all our treated dogs remained free from ticks throughout most of the study, and more than 90% remained free from CVBDs for the whole study time."

"Because we included naive sentinel beagles in the study, we were also able to model what would happen to dogs travelling to areas where CVBDs are present. We found that by the end of the study, only the Advantix(R)-treated beagles remained protected from infection, while 80% of the untreated beagles were infected with a CVBD. This demonstrates the very real need to protect dogs that are travelling to endemic areas", continued Prof. Otranto.

The study showed some interesting results with dogs that were positive with CVBDs when they entered the study. Of these, half of those treated with Advantix(R) were negative for CVBDs at the end of treatment, compared with only 13% of untreated dogs. This suggests the potential for natural clearance of CVBDs if a repellent treatment is used to prevent new transmissions.

This study was extremely comprehensive, studying both indigenous and introduced naive puppies, monitoring for several CVBDs and working with Dr. Breitschwerdt's team in the USA to use highly sensitive molecular testing techniques to ensure optimal diagnostic accuracy. According to Dr. Breitschwerdt, "This is the most comprehensive study, to my knowledge, ever conducted testing the efficacy of a repellent ectoparasiticide to prevent the transmission of a spectrum of CVBDs in young dogs."

"Thanks to this study we can see just how effective a treatment that repels as well as kills can be. With the increasing risk of CVBDs, I'd urge all pet owners to speak to their vets about finding the right tick-prevention strategy for their dog especially when travelling into endemic areas," said leading parasitology expert, Dr. Luis Cardoso of the University of Tras-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Portugal.

Sarah Weston, Global Veterinary Services of Bayer Animal Health said "It is important to realise that with globalisation, climate change and the increase in pet travel, many more pets now need to be protected from these diseases that can be potentially fatal for both pets and humans. This study demonstrates that using Advantix(R) is an effective way to protect pets from bites of ticks and sand flies, reducing the risk of CVBD transmission.

Bayer Animal Health has been researching in the field of parastitology over the last 100 years. The company is committed to advancing the scientific understanding of parasitology by supporting the annual CVBD World Forum and an online guide that is educating pet owners around the world on the dangers posed by parasites http://www.youtube.com/user/parasitesundercover1.

For more information on canine vector-borne diseases and the CVBD World Forum, please visit http://www.CVBD.org.

To view the full MMR release, including video interviews with the study investigator and leading veterinary experts, please click here (http://bit.ly/CVBDprevention )

About the study

The study was conducted over two parasite seasons, and ran from March 2008 to October 2009. It looked at two types of dog, puppies indigenous to the area and naive sentinel beagle puppies.

A total of 111 indigenous dogs were enrolled alongside 20 naive sentinel beagles. The dogs were randomly assigned in equal numbers to either a treated group receiving Advantix(R) at 3-weekly intervals for the course of the study or a control group receiving no treatment.

Please see the video 'Prof Otranto - Study design' for more information from Prof. Otranto on the study design.

The backgrounder also includes additional information on the study and the original study paper is available via the full MMR release.

About Bayer HealthCare

Bayer HealthCare, a subsidiary of Bayer AG, is one of the world's leading, innovative companies in the healthcare and medical products industry and is based in Leverkusen, Germany. The company combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Bayer Schering Pharma, Consumer Care and Medical Care divisions. Bayer HealthCare's aim is to discover and manufacture products that will improve human and animal health worldwide. Find more information at http://www.bayerhealthcare.com.

With a turnover of EUR977 million (2009) Bayer HealthCare's Animal Health Division is one of the world's leading manufacturers of veterinary drugs. The division manufactures and markets more than 100 different veterinary drugs and care products for livestock and companion animals.

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SOURCE Bayer HealthCare