HYBRID PHARMACOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO PAIN MANAGEMENT IN COMPANION ANIMALS

Abstract

This paper aimed at developing and validating a hybrid pharmacological management of pet pains using the strategies of qualitative insights on veterinary knowledge and quantitative pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) modelling.  We conducted structured interviews of veterinarians to discover information regarding the prevalent pain countermeasures, species-associated problems of treatments, and drug seeking behavior.  The optimal patterns used in the design of pharmacological combinations that comprise non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), opioids, and adjuvant therapy depend on a thematic analysis of the interview information.  In quantitative modelling, exponential decay modelling and modified Emax equation were utilized in order to match the most appropriate dosing regimes expecting prolonged pain relief, with the minimization of adverse effects.  The hybrid formulations have been tested in study-controlled clinical trials and in dogs, cats, and small exotic animals in acute or chronic pain situations.  To assess efficacy, we checked physiological markers and validated scales rating pain grades and to assess safety we checked clinical pathology and adverse event tracking.  The findings were that hybrid treatment methods are much more effective towards alleviating pain and they are more convenient to tolerate as compared with monotherapies. They also produced lesser side effects on the stomach and kidneys.  This form of integrating various strategies provides us with a means of addressing pain in a data-based and species-congenial method, and it has infinite potential to render animals healthier..