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Investigation of the efficacy of fluralaner spot-on (Bravecto®) against infestations of Ixodes holocyclus on cats

Overview of attention for article published in Parasites & Vectors, June 2018
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Title
Investigation of the efficacy of fluralaner spot-on (Bravecto®) against infestations of Ixodes holocyclus on cats
Published in
Parasites & Vectors, June 2018
DOI 10.1186/s13071-018-2924-3
Pubmed ID
Authors

Petr Fisara, Frank Guerino, Fangshi Sun

Abstract

Infestation of cats with the Australian paralysis tick, Ixodes holocyclus continues to be a threat because of the paralysis that can result from attachment of just a single tick. The outcome can be fatal, particularly if tick removal and treatment is not initiated soon after the onset of paralysis. However, there are no published studies to guide veterinarians and owners on preventive measures. A study was therefore initiated to determine the efficacy of a systemically-acting, spot-on formulation of fluralaner (Bravecto®) for cats against existing I. holocyclus infestations, and to investigate the duration of protection following a single administration. Healthy domestic cats, short or long-hair, immunized against holocyclotoxin, were randomly allocated to two groups of 10 cats per group, to receive either a single topically applied fluralaner treatment or no treatment. Fluralaner treatments were administered on Day 0 at a dose rate of 40 mg/kg. All cats were infested with 10 adult unfed female I. holocyclus on Day -1 and on Days 14, 28, 42, 56, 70 and 84. Ticks were assessed at 24 and 48 h after fluralaner treatment and 24, 48 and 72 hours after each subsequent re-infestation. Ticks were counted but not removed at the 24- and 48-h post-challenge assessments and were removed following the 72-h counts. The efficacy of fluralaner spot-on against an existing I. holocyclus infestation was 100% at 48 h post treatment. Following re-infestations, efficacy remained at 100% at the 72-h assessments for all challenges from Day 14 to Day 84. Differences between mean live tick counts on treated versus control cats were significant at all time points from the first post-treatment assessment (t-test: t(18) = 23.162; P < 0.0001) through the final challenge on Day 84 (t-test: t(18) = 21.153; P < 0.0001). No treatment-related adverse events were observed and there were no abnormal observations at the product application sites. A single treatment of fluralaner spot-on was well tolerated and provided 100% efficacy against I. holocyclus ticks for at least 84 days. Fluralaner spot-on can be a valuable tool to prevent tick infestation in cats, and to control the risk of I. holocyclus-induced paralysis.

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Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 24 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Unknown 24 100%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Ph. D. Student 4 17%
Unspecified 3 13%
Student > Master 3 13%
Researcher 2 8%
Student > Doctoral Student 2 8%
Other 1 4%
Unknown 9 38%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Veterinary Science and Veterinary Medicine 5 21%
Medicine and Dentistry 4 17%
Unspecified 3 13%
Nursing and Health Professions 1 4%
Unknown 11 46%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 1. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 28 June 2018.
All research outputs
#15,538,060
of 23,092,602 outputs
Outputs from Parasites & Vectors
#3,417
of 5,521 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#209,963
of 329,072 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Parasites & Vectors
#101
of 151 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 23,092,602 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 22nd percentile – i.e., 22% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 5,521 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a little more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 5.7. This one is in the 30th percentile – i.e., 30% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 329,072 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one is in the 27th percentile – i.e., 27% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
We're also able to compare this research output to 151 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 30th percentile – i.e., 30% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.