Comparative efficacy of moxidectin 2% equine oral gel and ivermectin 2% equine oral paste against Onchocerca cervicalis (Railliet and Henry, 1910) microfilariae in horses with naturally acquired infections in Formosa (Argentina).

On the basis of positive skin snips for Onchocerca cervicalis microfilariae (MF), 45 horses were chosen from 48 in a total of 257 screened on 12 locations in the northeast Province of Formosa (Argentina), and randomly assigned to two treatment groups of 20 horses each, and a nontreated control group of five horses. On Day 14 post-treatment (PT), skin snip samples in the ivermectin-treated (0.2 mg/kg) group were negative for normal viable microfilariae (MF), while horses in the control group maintained their pretreatment level of infection. On the same Day in the moxidectin-treated (0.4 mg/kg) group, 18 horses were negative for MF, but the remaining two had a total of 1 and 2 MF, respectively (equivalent to 10 and 20 MF/g of skin), but all three parasites showed marked cuticular and structural damage. Both horses were negative in a repeat biopsy on Day 21. From Day 3 PT, one ivermectin-treated horse (5%) evidenced an approximate 15 x 2 x 3 cm-sized, apparently nonpainful, oedematous swelling on the ventral midline, 20 cm in front of the navel, which remained unchanged on Day 14 PT. Adverse reactions were not observed in the moxidectin-treated group. Parasitaemia was found in 18.7% of sampled horses (48 of 257), and the number of MF varied between 10-1820/g of skin snip (mean 172). Similar prevalence and total counts had been described previously in 1985 and 1986 in cattle-farm horses in the same area of Argentina; in surveys in Texas (1974) and Louisiana (1995) in the USA, infection rates were also similar, but total counts much higher. It is concluded that moxidectin 2% equine oral gel and ivermectin 2% equine oral paste, were equally 100% effective in the control of O. cervicalis MF. Contrary to ivermectin, moxidectin did not cause post-treatment dermal reactions.