OVMA Handbooks
Issue link: https://publications.ovma.org/i/571762
OVMA 420 Bronte Street South, Suite 205, Milton, Ontario L9T 0H9 T. 905.875.0756 or 1.800.670.1702 (toll-free) F. 905.875.0958 or 1.877.482.5941 (toll-free) info@ovma.org www.ovma.org OVMA Position on ELDU OVMA takes the position that all ELDU (off label use) of biologicals and pharmaceuticals should be under the supervision of a veterinarian. Veterinarians are the only adequately educated and trained professionals with the ability determine and manage the inherent aforementioned risks with ELDU and answer many questions regarding drug use in animals, and are personally professionally accountable for each drug administered. ELDU by veterinarians must be performed within the confines of a valid VCPR. The Canadian gFARAD (Canadian Global Food Animal Residual Avoidance Database) was established in 2002 to provide residue avoidance information to veterinarians relating to approved drugs and the practice of ELDU. OVMA Position on Compounding The compounding of drugs is an ancient art & science that has been practiced by health professionals, including veterinarians, for centuries. The process involves combining two or more ingredients, at least one of which is a drug, to create a final product in an appropriate form for dosing. Compounded drugs are unapproved drugs that have not undergone the Health Canada approval process and are therefore part of the ELDU issue. Compounding is both necessary and beneficial for the treatment of veterinary patients. However, a potential exists for causing harm to animals and the public when drugs are compounded without adherence to the principles of contemporary pharmaceutical chemistry and current good compounding practices. In the absence of adequate safety, potency, and efficacy data for the use of a compounded drug in animals, the potential exists for treatment failures, and adverse reactions, including death. Furthermore, because the pharmaco kinetics and residual depletion times for compounded drugs are not known, assigning an empirical withdrawal time may result in residues of concern being in food derived from treated animals. Both the College of Veterinarians of Ontario (CVO) and the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association have position statements and guidelines for the legitimate use of compounded drugs in veterinarian practice. OVMA endorses both of these documents. Again, the OVMA position is that veterinarians should exclusively be granted the right to prescribe compounded drugs to animals. OVMA Position on Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) APIs are a substance or a mixture of substances intended to be used in the manufacture of a drug which become "active ingredients" of the drug product. API's are not approved to be used directly as drugs. Nevertheless, bulk active pharmaceuticals have been sold to farmers, pharmacists, feed mill operators, retailers, and veterinarians for direct administration to animals. This poses a significant public health issue, given the potential risks to the public from exposure to drug residues in food derived from treated animals.