Experimental diamidine poisoning due to commonly used babecides

Abstract

Forty-four apparently healthy dogs and four normal cattle were given multiple therapeutic, sterilizing or higher dosages of Berenil, Phenamidine and quinoronium sulphate in order to determine the toxic effects of these drugs. The former two drugs produced severe nervous symptoms such as imbalance, rolling movements, extensor rigidity, opisthotonus, nystagmus and terminal paralysis in the majority of the dogs. Prominent haemorrhagic and malacic lesions were encountered in the brain, mainly in the cerebellum, midbrain and thalamus. Two repeated daily doses of 20 mg/kg of Phenamidine caused brain lesions in one dog after a latent period of 2 days. Only mild nervous symptoms were produced in the cattle but none of the brain lesions found in the dogs were noticed. Degenerative lesions, mainly of a fatty nature, occurred in the liver, kidneys, myocardium and skeletal muscles of some of the dogs and cattle, being more prominent in the latter species. None of the animals which received quinoronium sulphate showed similar nervous symptoms or succumbed. The results of the experiments therefore clearly indicate that the diamidines are potently harmful drugs and that their therapeutic dosages should never be exceeded or repeated in the course of treatment of a disease.