CVM: NSAIDs safe despite concerns in human medicine

ROCKVILLE, MD. — The safety questions on non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in the human market aren't posing the same level of problems on the veterinary side.

The Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) issued a statement after requests from DVM Newsmagazine to discuss the issue.

In a written statement, FDA says, "CVM considers the approved veterinary NSAIDs to be safe and effective when used according to the label and when dogs owners are informed about common NSAID side effects. CVM is constantly screening the data for new adverse drug experiences (ADEs), including cardiac ADEs and we do receive a number of ADEs for NSAIDs. However, the ADEs, we have received for the approved NSAID products are not unexpected."

CVM's statement continues, "We do not receive many ADEs involving cardiac or brain infarction signs for NSAIDs or other drugs. There are considerable differences between the diagnostic procedures for pets and humans and the reporting of ADEs from veterinary and human drugs. It is extremely common for physicians to diagnose myocardial infarctions and strokes, and extremely uncommon for veterinarians to diagnose them. Most veterinarians do not order MRIs or CT scans, but they are very common diagnostic tools for humans.

CVM will continue to monitor these and other veterinary drugs and to look for signals of unusual frequency and severity. If, as in the case of the human drugs, we find new and conflicting scientific data on adverse events associated with an approved drug, we will take appropriate action," the statement says.