Adverse reaction to veterinary multivitamins and vitamin B complex injections in Nigerian local dogs

Abstract

It has been reported that dogs in South-western Nigeria react adversely to injectable veterinary multivitamins and human vitamin B complex preparations. Experimentation and interview survey were concurrently conducted to identify the type of Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) that the indications produced. For the survey, clinicians in forty randomly selected veterinary establishments and clinics from four south-western states of Nigeria were interviewed using questionnaires, to determine the extent of occurrence of ADRs in the clinics when the local dogs were treated with these two injectable drugs. Eighteen local mongrel puppies of ages 2-6 months were injected with the two drugs (veterinary multivitamins and human vitamin B-complex) only or separately. They reacted adversely and progressively to the drugs after the 10^th minute and the 27^th minute post-injection respectively. The average duration of the ADRs of the puppies was 110 minutes for the two drugs. Release of granulocytes were the haematological parameters responsible for these ADRs. Antihistamine (piriton i.e. diphenhydramine) and dexamethasone injection quickly resolved the ADRs in both cases but resolution was slightly faster with piriton alone than dexamethasone when taken along with veterinary multivitamins. The survey also showed that majority (62.5% and 67.5%) of the veterinarians interviewed reported that local dogs react adversely to both veterinary multivitamin injections and vitamin B complex injections respectively, and that the administration of either piriton or dexamethasone mitigated the reactions.

Keywords: Adverse drug reactions, Mongrels, Multivitamins, Human B complex