ELANCO’S COMFORTIS® LEADS THE WAY IN MEETING DEMAND FOR FLEA TREATMENT FOR PRURITIC ANIMALS
Researchby Elanco Companion Animal Health has revealed that 61% of general practitioners find that fleas are responsible for more than 25% of pruritic cases they see, with 20% saying that the parasites are connected to more than half of pruritic cases.
The research also found that speed of kill is the top priority for both dermatologists and general practitioners when it comes to treatment of fleas on pruritic animals.
Conducted amongst delegates from across Europe, the Middle East and Africa attending the 2014 ESVD-ECVD annual congress the study found that Elanco’s Comfortis®, the chewable tablet for dogs and cats containing the novel active ingredient spinosad, continues to be the first choice for many veterinary dermatologists following a similar survey conducted last year. At the 2014 conference, 79% of dermatologists said that Comfortis is their first choice oral flea treatment and 83% of this group are very or extremely likely to recommend it as a treatment for fleas.
Elanco also found that both specialist dermatologists (97%) and general practitioners (91%) strongly recognise that flea control for pruritic animals is a continuous ongoing treatment throughout the animal’s life. The majority of respondents (80%) considered monthly treatments as the most likely time period to encourage treatment compliance compared to every 12 weeks (18%).
For pruritic animals, the survey revealed that the most important flea control features were speed of kill (83%) and a treatment that doesn't wash off or interfere with topical dermatological therapies (71%). This figure was higher for dermatologist-only responses, (increasing to 92% and 82% respectively). Half of all respondents felt that it was important to have a flea control licensed for use in dogs and cats, with over half of dermatologists expressing that their preferred route of administration for dogs and cats is an oral tablet.
Matthew Rowe, senior brand manager at Elanco, says: “Practising vets are seeing a high proportion of pruritic cases as a consequence of fleas and it is a problem that can be dealt with effectively within their clinics with the right treatment. As an oral tablet that starts killing fleas within just 30 minutes, Comfortis offers the most important features in a flea treatment as revealed in this survey. We are delighted that those working with pruritic animals value and endorse Comfortis and that we are able to provide them with the convenience of a monthly tablet that is licensed for use in both dogs and cats.”
