Clinical effectiveness and safety of a new NSAID, firocoxib: a 1,000 dog study.

For the Previcox (firocoxib, Merial) Experience Trial, practicing veterinarians across the United States were asked to enroll dogs diagnosed with osteoarthritis (OA). At an initial visit, owners of dogs deemed suitable for NSAID therapy were given Previcox and instructed to maintain a daily diary and to return 10 and 40 days after treatment began. Approximately 86% of the 1,002 enrolled dogs completed the study. The withdrawal rate associated with gastrointestinal side effects was low (2.9% of dogs), and no serious drug-related adverse events were reported. Investigators and Owners rated 93% and 91% of dogs, respectively, as improved, and 86% of owners rated their dogs "happier" or "more active" after treatment with firocoxib. The improvements observed following initiation of firocoxib therapy were independent of gender, breed, starting body weight, age, and prior NSAID use. These results support previous findings indicating that firocoxib is well tolerated and effective when used under field conditions.