Treatment of Sarcoptic mange infestation in rabbits with long acting injectable ivermectin

Abstract

Abstract Sarcoptic mange infestation is one of the major constrains in commercial rabbit rearing due to their ability to produce negative impact on the growth rates and feed conversion efficiency. Ten adult rabbits presented with the history of anorexia, pruritis and crusty lesion in ear, face and legs were selected for the study. Skin scraping exam13 ination revealed presence of Sarcoptes scabiei. The subcutaneous administration of single dose long acting injectable Ivermectin (3.15% w/v) formulation at a dose rate of 700 mcg/kg body weight was found to be safe, effective and less time consuming for the management of Sarcoptic mange in naturally infested rabbits. The skin scrapings collected from all the rabbits under study on days 14 and 28 were negative on both instances indicating rapid elimination of S. scabiei with a single dose of long acting ivermectin. No relapse of infestation was observed in any of the rabbits under treatment during the 6 month observation period following the treatment.

Full text

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Journal of Parasitic Diseases
ISSN 0971-7196
J Parasit Dis
DOI 10.1007/s12639-019-01137-z
Treatment of Sarcoptic mange infestation
in rabbits with long acting injectable
ivermectin
Khan Sharun, Satheesh Anjana,
Syed Aboobacker Sidhique & Shaji
Panikkassery

1 23
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SHORT COMMUNICATION
Treatment of Sarcoptic mange infestation in rabbits with long
acting injectable ivermectin
Khan Sharun
1
•Satheesh Anjana
2
•Syed Aboobacker Sidhique
3
•
Shaji Panikkassery
3
Received: 1 March 2019 / Accepted: 18 June 2019
ÓIndian Society for Parasitology 2019
Abstract Sarcoptic mange infestation is one of the major
constrains in commercial rabbit rearing due to their ability
to produce negative impact on the growth rates and feed
conversion efficiency. Ten adult rabbits presented with the
history of anorexia, pruritis and crusty lesion in ear, face
and legs were selected for the study. Skin scraping exam-
ination revealed presence of Sarcoptes scabiei. The sub-
cutaneous administration of single dose long acting
injectable Ivermectin (3.15% w/v) formulation at a dose
rate of 700 mcg/kg body weight was found to be safe,
effective and less time consuming for the management of
Sarcoptic mange in naturally infested rabbits. The skin
scrapings collected from all the rabbits under study on days
14 and 28 were negative on both instances indicating rapid
elimination of S. scabiei with a single dose of long acting
ivermectin. No relapse of infestation was observed in any
of the rabbits under treatment during the 6 month obser-
vation period following the treatment.
Keywords Sarcoptic mange Rabbit Ivermectin 
Long acting
Introduction
Parasitic infestation is a common problem faced by
majority of the rabbit breeders. Sarcoptic mange infestation
due to Sarcoptes scabiei is one of the major constrains in
commercial rabbit rearing (Darzi et al. 2007). Chronic
cases of Sarcoptic mange leads to anorexia, lethargy,
emaciation and can even cause death in rabbits (Scott et al.
2001). Increased housing density and poor hygiene are the
most important predisposing factors in case of Sarcoptes
scabiei infestation (McCarthy et al. 2004).
In Sarcoptic mange, lesions are commonly seen in ears,
nose, feet and perineal area (Kachhawa et al. 2013). Davies
et al. (1991) reported that the clinical signs of Sarcoptic
mange includes pruritis, seborrhea, alopecia, hypersensi-
tivity reaction, crusting and hyperkeratosis. Dry crusty
lesions are commonly seen in the ear margins (Reddy et al.
2016). Ivermectin is the drug commonly used for the
treatment of Sarcoptic mange in rabbits. Subcutaneous
route is the most efficient and preferred route of adminis-
tration of macrocyclic lactones like Ivermectin and mox-
idectin in terms of bioavailability when compared with oral
and topical administration (Alvinerie et al. 1993,1998).
The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the
efficacy and safety of single dose of commercially avail-
able long acting injectable Ivermectin formulation (3.15%
w/v) in eliminating Sarcoptes scabiei mite from naturally
infested rabbits.
Materials and methods
Ten adult crossbred rabbits (six adult male and four adult
female) were presented to Veterinary Polyclinic, Man-
narkkad, Palakkad with a history of anorexia, pruritis and
&Khan Sharun
sharunkhan@ivri.res.in; sharunkhansk@gmail.com
1
Division of Surgery, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research
Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh 243122, India
2
Department of Veterinary Surgery and Radiology, College of
Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Pookode, Kerala Veterinary
and Animal Sciences University, Wayanad, Kerala, India
3
Veterinary Polyclinic, Mannarkkad, Palakkad, Animal
Husbandry Department, Kerala, India
123
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https://doi.org/10.1007/s12639-019-01137-z
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crusty lesion in ear, face and legs. Skin scrappings were
collected and processed based on the standard protocol
(Soulsby 1982).The skin scrapings were examined on 0th,
14th, and 28th day of presentation.
Treatment was initiated with single dose of long acting
injectable Ivermectin formulation 3.15% w/v (Neomec LA,
Intas Pharmaceuticals Ltd.) subcutaneously at a dose rate
of 700 mcg/kg body weight. For the supplementation of
elemental zinc and essential vitamins, Zincovit (Apex
laboratories Pvt. Ltd.) syrup was also administered orally
five drops twice daily for 2 weeks. Adverse reactions in
rabbits under treatment with Ivermectin were analyzed by
examination during 14th and 28th day of presentation. The
owner was also advised to keep the rabbits under obser-
vation for any signs of toxicity. All of the rabbits were kept
under observation for 6 months post treatment for identi-
fication of recurrent infestation with Sarcoptes scabiei.
Results and discussion
Clinical examination revealed dried crusted scabs dis-
tributed in the ear margins, nose, face and legs (Fig. 1a, b).
Self-induced excoriations in the skin was also observed.
The skin was thickened and erythematous with patchy loss
of hair.
Examination of skin scraping on 14th and 28th day of
presentation revealed absence of Sarcoptes scabiei in all of
the rabbits under treatment (Fig. 2a, b). Due to the con-
secutive negative results of skin scrapping examination
further examinations were found to be unnecessary. No
relapse of infestation was observed in any of the rabbits
under treatment during the 6 month observation period
following the treatment. A single dose of long acting
injectable Ivermectin (3.15% w/v) formulation at a dose
rate of 700 mcg/kg bodyweight was found to be sufficient
in completely eliminating Sarcoptes scabiei mites in nat-
urally infested rabbits. All the rabbits were free from any
clinically observable adverse reaction due to treatment with
Ivermectin throughout the period of study.
Mange infestation caused by Sarcoptes scabiei is com-
mon in rabbits, which is characterized by presence or
absence of pruritis, specific morphology of mite and pattern
of lesion distribution (Bhardwaj et al. 2012). In the present
case, the lesions were distributed in the ear margins, nose,
face and legs. Similar distribution of lesions was also
observed by Prakash et al. (2017). Using
injectable macrocyclic lactones like Ivermectin, dor-
amectin, and moxidectin instead of dips have many
advantages like they are quicker and safer, cause the least
stress to the rabbit, does not require any special handling
facilities and they are also having broad spectrum anthel-
minthic activity (Voyvoda et al. 2005). Both Ivermectin
and eprinomectin are highly effective in managing Sar-
coptic mange infestation when used topically (Nazir et al.
2016). Subcutaneous administration of Ivermectin is
effective in mixed mange infestation involving Sarcoptes,
Notoedres, and Psoroptes in rabbit (Panigrahi et al. 2016).
Several authors have used parentral Ivermectin at different
dose rates for the treatment of mange in rabbit. Among
them, most of the treatment protocols involves a 7 day gap
between subsequent injections of ivermectin (Kumar et al.
2018a; Singh et al. 2017; Panigrahi et al. 2016).
But all of the Ivermectin injectable treatment protocols
for treating Sarcoptic mange involves multiple dosing. This
is because mite eggs are resistant to acaricidal products and
thus multiple treatments at various intervals are required to
ensure presence of active drug during the time of hatching
(Arends et al. 1999). Gokbulut et al. (2010) conducted
pharmacokinetic study of subcutaneously administered
Ivermectin in rabbits and reported the need of two doses of
Ivermectin separated by 15–20 day interval between the
doses to provide sufficient levels of Ivermectin in the cir-
culation that maintains therapeutic efficacy. The introduc-
tion of novel long acting (3.15% w/v) formulation of
Ivermectin favors a slow absorption from the subcutaneous
Fig. 1 a Rabbit presented with lesions in the ear, face and legs. bDried crusty scabs distributed in the ear margins
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site that prolongs the presence of Ivermectin in the blood
circulation (Lifschitz et al. 2007).
Kumar et al. (2018b) reported that supplementation of
vitamins with Ivermectin augments the parasitological and
clinical recovery in rabbits infected with Sarcoptes sca-
biei when compared to that of Ivermectin alone. Dietary
supplementation of vitamins like vitamin A helps to
correct the imbalance between oxidants and antioxidants
by providing more of antioxidants. This is helpful in
managing drug induced oxidative stress (Omshi et al.
2018). Hence elemental zinc and vitamin supplementation
can be used as an adjunct in rabbits undergoing Iver-
mectin therapy.
The use of long acting Ivermectin helps to reduce the
number of doses required in treatment of Sarcoptic mange
in rabbits to a single dose. By reducing the number of
doses, the high cost of treatment due to multiple dosing can
be considerably reduced making the single dose regimen
the most economic treatment protocol against Sarcoptes
scabiei in rabbits. The single dose regimen of long acting
Ivermectin followed in the present study will also be
helpful in reducing the stress associated with multiple
subcutaneous injection of 1% w/v ivermectin treatment
regimen. The slow release and prolonged presence of
Ivermectin in the circulation helps to prevent toxicity and
also provide prolonged biological activity against the
mites. Thus long acting injectable Ivermectin (3.15% w/v)
preparations are superior to that of conventional Ivermectin
preparations (1% w/v) in managing Sarcoptic mange
infestations in rabbits.
Conclusion
This study indicates that a single dose of long acting
injectable Ivermectin (3.15% w/v) formulation at a dose
rate of 700 mcg/kg bodyweight through subcutaneous route
is sufficient in completely eliminating Sarcoptes scabiei
mites in naturally infested rabbits. Oral supplementation of
elemental zinc and vitamins helped in the early clinical
improvement within a period of 2 weeks. The complete
clinical and parasitological cure produces by a single dose
of long acting injectable Ivermectin in naturally infested
rabbits along with the absence of adverse effect suggest
that the long acting Ivermectin formulations (3.15% w/v)
are the most effective, safest, economic and practical
alternative for the treatment of Sarcoptic mange infestation
in rabbits.
Author contributions KS: Conceived and designed the analysis,
collected the data, performed the analysis, and written the manuscript.
SA: Collected the data, performed the analysis. SAS: Conceived and
designed the analysis, collected the data. SP: Conceived and designed
the analysis.
Compliance with ethical standards
Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of
interest.
Ethical approval The study was conducted in clinical cases of
Sarcoptes scabiei infestation in rabbits presented to Veterinary
Polyclinic, Mannarkkad, Palakkad and does not require any permis-
sion from animal ethics committee. All protocols followed were as
per the guidelines from the standard textbooks in Veterinary Medicine
and were ethical.
Fig. 2 a Sarcoptes scabiei mite under microscope. bSarcoptes scabiei ventral view
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