Single drug reviews
We review new and established authorised veterinary medicines.
How we review medicines
Prepare a detailed outline that defines the questions we want to answer.
Perform a thorough literature search, including any official prescribing information, regulatory reports and promotional material.
Commission a review and critical appraisal of the evidence and preparation of the draft. This includes scrutiny of promotional claims.
Circulate the draft to a panel of practising vets, topic specialists and other relevant commentators (such as regulatory authorities, professional organisations). We also invite comments from companies that market products mentioned in the draft. Commentators can challenge interpretation of the evidence, ask questions, raise points relevant to clinical practice and share insights and opinions.
Edit the draft to incorporate the comments.
Rigorous checks before the draft is published as a CPD module on the Veterinary Prescriber website. The draft is fully referenced and we check the facts against the original references. We distinguish fact from opinion.
A medicine review includes a background describing the condition being treated; an outline of the pharmacology and rationale for use; a summary of the evidence on efficacy and safety (and comparative efficacy and safety), what we do not know about the medicine (the uncertainties); practical aspects (regulatory, dosage, ease of use, administration, monitoring, storage cost); comment on whether promotional claims are justified; environmental impact; and a conclusion.
Authorised veterinary medicines
Below are the medicines we have reviewed with the date of publication
Ekyflogyl (prednisolone and lidocaine in DMSO) gel for horses (March 2024)
Librela (bedinvetmab) - an update (February 2024)
Velagliflozin (Senvelgo) a new oral treatment for diabetic cats (December 2023)
DogStem - is it a transformative therapy for dogs with osteoarthritis? September 2023
The use of trazodone to facilitate veterinary procedures in dogs and cats. June 2023
Zenalpha (medetomidine+ vatinoxan) solution for injection for dogs. A new product for sedation of dogs. March 2023
Pentosan polysulphate and canine joint disease. September 2022
Paracetamol for the management of pain in dogs. May 2022
Reconcile (fluoxetine) what’s its role in treating separation anxiety in dogs. February 2022
Tradozone interactions. January 2022
Daxocox (enflicoxib) a new NSAID for dogs. November 2021
Solensia (frunevetmab) a new medicine for cats with osteoarthritis pain. September 2021
Librela (bedinvetmab) a new medicine for managing osteoarthritis pain in dogs. July 2021
Tigilanol tiglate a new treatment for mast-cell tumours in dogs. October 2020
Spotlight on Bravecto. June 2020
Imepitoin for idiopathic epilepsy in dogs. December 2019
Torasemide for treating congestive heart failure in dogs. October 2019
Tramadol for pain relief in dogs. What’s its place. November 2018
Dexmedetomidine for noise aversion in dogs. How effective is it? July 2019
Imepitoin for noise aversion in dogs. April 2019
Grapiprant - a new drug for dogs with osteoarthritis. November 2018
Lokivetmab a new drug for canine atopic dermatitis. September 2017
Other medicines
We also review medicines that are not authorised for veterinary use but that are used in the treatment of an individual animal under the prescribing cascade when there is no suitable veterinary authorised product. Below is a list of the drugs we have reviewed with the date of publication.
Gabapentin and pregabalin November 2022
Cannabidiol (CBD) in dogs. September 2022
Mirtazapine as an appetite stimulant in cats. March 2021
Amantadine for the management of chronic pain in cats and dogs. September 2017
Lipid emulsion in the management of toxicity. November 2017