Brand: MEBADOWN ® SUPER Oral Suspension
Company: DOWNLAND - ELANCO
FORMULATION: «drench» for oral administration.
- Closantel: 50 g/L (=5%)
- Mebendazole: 75 g/L (= 7.5%)
CHEMICAL CLASS of the active ingredient(s):
- Closantel: salicylanilide
- Mebendazole: benzimidazole
INDICATIONS: SHEEP & LAMBS
PARASITES CONTROLLED (spectrum of activity)
- Liver fluke infections (chronic and sub-acute fasciolosis) caused by Fasciola hepatica (limited efficacy against immature stages)
- Nasal bots (Oestrus ovis)
- Gastro-intestinal roundworms: Haemonchus contortus (adults, immatures, inhibited stages), Ostertagia spp, Trichostrongylus spp, Nematodirus spp, Cooperia spp, Oesophagostomum spp, Chabertia ovina, Bunostomum spp, Trichuris ovis, Strongyloides papillosus.
- Lungworms: Dictyocaulus viviparus
- Tapeworms: Moniezia spp.
- Nasal bots (Oestrus ovis)
RECOMMENDED DOSE
Sheep: 1 ml product/5 kg bw, equivalent to 10 mg/kg closantel, and 15 mg/kg mebendazole.
- ≤5 kg: 1 ml product
- 6-10 kg: 2 ml product
- 11-20 kg: 4 ml product
- 21-30 kg: 6 ml product
- 31-40 kg: 8 ml product
- 41-50 kg: 10 ml product
- 51-60 kg: 12 ml product
- 61-70 kg: 14 ml product
- 71-80 kg: 16 ml product
SAFETY
- LD50 (acute oral) in rats:
- closantel: a.i. 262 to 342 mg/kg (depending on the studies)
- mebendazole: a.i. > 1280 mg/kg
- LD50 (acute dermal) in rats: n.a.
Suspected poisoning? Read the articles on closantel safety and mebendazole safety in this site.
Withholding periods (=withdrawal times) for meat & milk (country-specific differences may apply: read the product label)
- Meat: UK: 65 days;
- Milk: UK: Not authorised for use in ewes producing milk for human consumption including during the dry period. Do not use within 1 year prior to the first lambing in ewes intended to produce milk for human consumption.
WARNING !!!: Never use on humans, dogs or cats
You may be interested in the following articles in this site dealing with the general safety of veterinary products:
- Safety for humans
- Safety for domestic animals
- Safety for the environment
- Hazard classifications of pesticides
RESISTANCE PREVENTION
Risk of resistance: YES.
Resistance of gastrointestinal roundworms to all benzimidazoles (incl. mebendazole) in ruminants is a very serious and increasing problem worldwide, particularly in sheep and goats, but also in cattle. The most affected worm species are: Haemonchus spp, Ostertagia spp /Teladorsagia spp, Trichostrongylus spp, Nematodirus spp and Chabertia ovina.
Cases of resistance to closantel have been reported for Haemonchus contortus and Fasciola hepatica, but seems to be not widespread in most countries. There are also a few reports on liver fluke populations in sheep resistant to rafoxanide and closantel (both salicylanilides), probably with cross-resistance to nitroxinil, and also to clorsulon. So far resistance to these compounds seems to be less frequent than to resistance to benzimidazoles.
This means that if this product does not achieve the expected efficacy against the mentioned parasites, it may be due to resistance and not to incorrect use, which is usually the most frequent cause of product failure.
Alternative chemical classes/active ingredients to prevent resistance of liver flukes through product rotation:
- Clorsulon: effective only against ≥8 weeks old liver flukes.
- Nitroxinil: effective only against ≥8 (sheep) or ≥7 (cattle) weeks old liver flukes.
- Oxyclozanide (salicylanilide): effective only against ≥12 (sheep) or ≥10 (cattle) weeks old liver flukes.
- Rafoxanide (salicylanilide): effective only against ≥6 weeks old liver flukes.
- Triclabendazole (benzimidazole): effective against adult liver flukes and all immature stages. However, resistance has been reported in various countries worldwide and is increasing.
Alternative chemical classes/active ingredients to prevent resistance of gastrointestinal roundworms through product rotation:
- Macrocyclic lactones (e.g. abamectin, doramectin, eprinomectin, ivermectin, moxidectin, etc.). Resistance to macrocyclic lactones is also increasing and strengthening quickly in many countries.
- Levamisole. Resistance to levamisole has been reported in most countries, but is usually less strong and frequent than to benzimidazoles.
- Monepantel: available only for sheep & goats in some countries (e.g. Australia, UK & EU, New Zealand). First cases of resistance reported in New Zealand in 2013.
- Tetrahydropyrimidines (e.g. morantel, pyrantel): effective only against certain gastrointestinal roundworms. Not available in some countries. Resistance to morantel has been reported in some countries.
- Nitroxinil: effective only against certain gastrointestinal roundworms (e.g. Bunostomum spp, Haemonchus spp, Oesophagostomum spp). Not available in some countries.
These alternative products may not be available in all countries or may not be available as drenches.
There are only very few reports on resistance of Moniezia spp tapeworms to benzimidazoles (e.g. fenbendazole) but it is certainly not yet a widespread problem.
Learn more about resistance and how it develops.
MARKETING
Are the active ingredients of this product ORIGINAL* or GENERICS**?
- GENERICS
*Meaning that they are still patent protected and generics are not yet available
**Meaning that they have lost patent protection and may be acquired from manufacturers of generic active ingredients other than the holder of the original patent.
COUNTRIES where this brand/product is marketed: UK. MEBADOWN SUPER is the same product as SUPAVERM from ELANCO, but distributed through DOWNLAND.
GENERIC BRANDS available? Yes, but not a lot in most countries, if at all.
Click here to learn more about GENERIC vs. ORIGINAL drugs.
For an overview on the most used antiparasitic drench brands click here.
COMMENTS
MEBADOWN is a classic combination drench: closantel is effective mainly against flukes and mebendazole is effective against roundworms and tapeworms.
Closantel is a veteran flukicide (introduced in the 1970s) but a rather particular one, because it is effectiev against liver flukes, against a few roundworms and against a few external parasites as well (e.g. nasal bots). It has also an effect on the viability of some tick species, but this is usually of no practical use under most field conditions in open systems: numerous alternative hosts allow survival of enough ticks that ensure the infestation of the environment.
Closantel offers good control of adult liver flukes, but efficacy against immatures is incomplete (>5 weeks ~90%; 3-4 weeks <73%): this is important because immature stages are the most damaging ones. Efficacy against roundworms is usually limited to blood-feeding species. This is related to the fact that ingested closantel is quickly absorbed to blood where it binds strongly to plasma proteins. There it remains for several days before being excreted. In contrast, its concentration in the tissues is usually too low to kill worms that do not feed blood, which are the majority among the roundworms that infect sheep.
Mebendazole, a benzimidazole, is also a veteran anthelmintic (introduced in the 1970s). It has a broad spectrum of activity against gastrointestinal roundworms, lungworms and some tapeworms. It is more frequently used on horses and pets than on ruminants.
As all benzimidazoles (as well as other anthelmintics such as levamisole, monepantel, and tetrahydropyrimidines), mebendazole administered as a drench has no residual effect, i.e. it kills the parasites shortly after administration, but does not significantly protect the animals against re-infestation by infective stages in their environment.
Unfortunately, resistance of several gastrointestinal roundworms to all benzimidazoles (including mebendazole) is already very high and very frequent worldwide in sheep and goats, slightly lower in cattle, which has significantly reduced their usage in livestock. The presence of closantel in this product should ensure efficacy against benzimidazole-resistant Haemonchus contortus, but not against other resistant worms that do not feed blood.
Nowadays more convenient pour-ons and injectables containing macrocyclic lactones (e.g. abamectin, doramectin, eprinomectin, ivermectin, moxidectin) are often preferred over drenches with benzimidazoles or combinations. Macrocyclic lactones also ensure several weeks protection against re-infestation by several worm species, in contrast with all benzimidazoles that lack any residual effect.
In ruminants, reducing the amount of feed slows down the exit flow of the rumen and prolongs the time during which the active ingredient remains there and is absorbed. Consequently it is advisable to reduce the access of animals to feed (especially to fresh pasture, not to water) 24 hours before administration. For the same reason, it is better to keep the animals away from food for about 6 hours after drenching. However sick or weak animals should not be kept away from food and fasting animals should have access to water. In cattle, a fiber-rich diet also increases the bioavailability of fenbendazole.
Mebendazole active ingredient is a solid compound poorly soluble in water and in drenches it is formulated as a suspension (not as a solution or as an emulsion). A key unfavorable feature of all suspensions is that the suspended solid particles tend to fall down to the bottom of the container and sediment, very much like sand in water. This means that suspensions must be thoroughly shaken before use. How fast the suspension sediments and how easily shaking the container redistributes the suspension depends on the formulation quality. A good formulation sediments slowly and shaking will re-suspend it quickly. Bad formulations sediment quickly and shaking re-suspends them slowly.
Thoroughly shaking suspensions before use is crucial for efficacy. If the active ingredient remains in the sediment, a few animals may get most of the active ingredient and will be overdosed, and the large majority will get almost only solvents and will be underdosed.
Click here for general information on good practices for the prevention and control of gastrointestinal worms in livestock.
DISCLAIMER
This article IS NOT A PRODUCT LABEL. It offers complementary information that may be useful to veterinary professionals and users that are not familiar with veterinary antiparasitics.
Information offered in this article has been extracted from publications issued by manufacturers, government agencies (e.g. EMEA, FDA, USDA, etc.) or in the scientific literature. No guarantee is given on its accuracy, integrity, sufficiency, actuality and opportunity, and any liability is denied. Read the site's DISCLAIMER.
In case of doubt contact the manufacturer or a veterinary professional.