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 Expert
Posts: 2097
 
Location: Deep South | I just read this and thought I would share:
Notice about discontinuing the use of Previcox in horses and changing to the new Equioxx tablet:
Many of you know that for several years equine veterinarians have been prescribing the dog medication Previcox to horses for the management of chronic pain. Previcox contains a drug called firocoxib which is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) in the same family as bute and Banamine. The mode of action of firocoxib potentially creates less negative side effects than bute and Banamine making it more ideal for long term use or for use in animals with sensitivity to NSAIDs. The reason that equine veterinarians prescribed the dog version of this drug in the form of Previcox is because the equine version, Equioxx, was only available in a paste formulation that was about 7x more expensive than the dog version for the same amount of drug. This made Equioxx paste unaffordable to most people and impractical to use for some owners to administer. In order to make this great drug available to our patients, we prescribed Previcox in what is called "extra-label use".
The laws that govern the extra-label use of drugs state that we as veterinarians cannot legally prescribe an off- label drug when there is a labeled drug available (meaning we are not supposed to prescribe a drug labeled for dogs when there is an FDA approved version of that same drug labeled for horses). We were however able to get around this for many years on a technicality because there was no tablet form of firocoxib available for horses, only paste.
The drug company that makes Previcox and Equioxx recognized what was happening in the equine industry and supply/demand pushed them into offering Equioxx in a tablet form that was priced much closer to Previcox. This is good news because while we were able to observe that Previcox did indeed work to some extent in horses, there were no studies on the dog formulation to know how it was truly absorbed or affected the horse. We now have an FDA approved version of firocoxib in Equioxx tablet form which means we are no longer legally allowed to prescribe Previcox to horses. Further, the FDA can potentially pursue punishments such as removal of our veterinary licenses if we continue to prescribe Previcox to horses.
While the manufacturer cost handed down to us is somewhat higher for Equioxx than Previcox, Large Animal Veterinary Services is doing our best to make the cost of Equioxx tablets as close to Previcox as possible so that it continues to be an affordable option for all of our clients. This change is effective immediately. Please email or call if you have any questions about Equioxx tablets.
We would also like to take the opportunity to remind people that horses who are on Equioxx and Previcox should not have bute or Banamine administered to them in the 24 hour time period of having received Equioxx/Previcox unless specifically recommended by a veterinarian. The concurrent use of multiple NSAIDs can result in serious illness. |
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 I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
  
Location: MD | Where is this info from? The 57 mg 60 count Previcox is the same exact price as the Equioxx 57 mg 60 count. Veternarians are still prescribing the larger dose of Previcox 227 mg 60 if needed case by case. |
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Expert
Posts: 2097
Location: Deep South | CE's wrapn3 - 2016-12-21 12:59 PM
Where is this info from? The 57 mg 60 count Previcox is the same exact price as the Equioxx 57 mg 60 count. Veternarians are still prescribing the larger dose of Previcox 227 mg 60 if needed case by case.
Large Animal Vet Services in CA posted it on their FB page.
https://www.facebook.com/largeanimaldocs/ |
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 Off the Wall Wacky
Posts: 2981
Location: Louisiana | I just ordered a bottle of the Equioxx as I'm almost out of Previcox. The price from my vet is nearly the same per dose. |
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I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | dashnlotti - 2016-12-21 10:43 PM I just ordered a bottle of the Equioxx as I'm almost out of Previcox. The price from my vet is nearly the same per dose.
It should be the exact same price. It costs your vet the exact same for the Previcox 57 mg as the Equioxx 57 mg 60 count. |
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 BHW Resident Surgeon
Posts: 25352
Location: Bastrop, Texas | This is terrific news. No more playing games or screwing around to split pills, etc....
I think the importance of not taking other NSAIDS like Bute concurrently is worth repeating. |
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Off the Wall Wacky
Posts: 2981
Location: Louisiana | CE's wrapn3 - 2016-12-22 7:28 AM
dashnlotti - 2016-12-21 10:43 PM I just ordered a bottle of the Equioxx as I'm almost out of Previcox. The price from my vet is nearly the same per dose.
It should be the exact same price. It costs your vet the exact same for the Previcox 57 mg as the Equioxx 57 mg 60 count.
Well I don't remember what I paid for the giant bottle of Previcox I got last year lol. And they were the bigger tabs you have to quarter, so it lasted dang near forever. I don't give it daily. |
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 It Goes On
Posts: 2262
Location: Muskogee, OK | Yes, the 57mg Previcox is priced the same as the 57mg Equioxx. The problem arises in that MANY people have been using the 227mg Previcox and quartering it, which indeed makes the doses cheaper than if you use the 57mg whole tablet.
From a veterinarian standpoint this puts us in a very sticky situation- we don't want to price gauge people however it is technically illegal for us to continue to sell the canine version of Previcox to equine clients when there is a labeled, tablet form Equine version now available. The equine version unfortunately is not offered in a 227mg tablet at this time.
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 823
Location: East Texas | Lol...any of you want to borrow my old grey bearded lab to go to the vet, let me know. Hope you all have a great Christmas. |
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 My Heart Be Happy
Posts: 9159
Location: Arkansas | CrossDRanch - 2016-12-23 8:02 PM
Lol...any of you want to borrow my old grey bearded lab to go to the vet, let me know. Hope you all have a great Christmas.
In the next two weeks I'll be out of Previcox, um, I mean I'll be happy to take your lab to the vet for you for his arthritis check up  |
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