[기고] Veterinary medicine, the key to increasing the efficacy and convenience of pet treatment – ​​Daegeun Kim – Daily Bet

The number of households raising companion animals and the number of companion animals raised is continuously increasing, and the average lifespan of companion animals is also increasing due to advances in veterinary medicine. Accordingly, the management of chronic diseases, which were recognized as requiring management only in humans, is becoming very important in veterinary medicine as well. The disease areas are also diverse, ranging from autoimmune diseases such as atopy, endocrine diseases such as diabetes, to diseases that affect quality of life such as joint pain, and age-related diseases such as dementia.

Despite this trend, front-line veterinary clinical practice mainly uses crushed or broken down human medicines or prescribes imported veterinary medicines from developing countries that boast low prices as a weapon. Of course, it is said that the standards and testing methods for domestic sales were met, but it is difficult to erase doubts about the quality of the drug. In addition, it is difficult to say that veterinary medicines used for diabetes or autoimmune diseases that require long-term management are still meeting the unmet needs of patients.

A pharmaceutical product is not simply about manufacturing a drug containing an active pharmaceutical ingredient. Data is needed throughout the entire process to ensure that the drug is finally administered to the patient and is effective and safe. The CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control) aspect of the product must be considered until the medicine is safely delivered to the patient.

Human medicines are designed assuming that a person swallows one tablet as is, but if it is crushed or divided into pieces, there is a lot of room for deterioration, such as increased chemical reaction, loss of efficacy of active ingredients, or increase in harmful impurities. Even if the active ingredient is administered safely without deterioration, the rate of absorption and distribution within the gastrointestinal tract may vary, so there is a possibility that side effects may occur due to pharmacological action beyond what was intended. This is why it is necessary to use medicines specifically for animals, even if they are medicines with the same ingredients.

To solve these problems, veterinary medicines are designed according to the physiological characteristics of animals, and when necessary, their safety and effectiveness are verified through clinical trials on animals. Through this, various uncertainties that arise when using human medicine can be resolved, and accurate treatment can be provided with optimized usage and dosage for companion animals.

In addition, veterinary medicines are developed in formulations that take taste and smell into consideration to increase ease of administration. Unlike humans, animals react sensitively to the bitter taste or smell of medicine, and when human medicine is powdered and administered, animals often reject it. If your pet’s medication compliance is low, the treatment itself becomes meaningless and the treatment period increases. This is a huge stress for the owners, and sometimes they have to repeat the difficult process of forcefully feeding their pets medication every day, or they end up discontinuing treatment because they are unable to give the medication.

Therefore, the need for veterinary medicines to minimize companion animals’ refusal to take medication and maximize treatment effectiveness is being increasingly emphasized. Veterinary medicines tailored to the characteristics of pets provide accurate dosage dosages, and formulations are developed taking taste and smell into consideration to increase the convenience of taking, thereby minimizing medication refusal and helping to ensure safe and effective drug administration.

Many products of this type have been released in the global veterinary drug market and are also distributed domestically. Representative examples include Semintra and Metacam products from Boehringer Ingelheim. The active ingredients of this product were initially developed as medicines for humans, but it was confirmed that they were effective on animals as well, so the bitter taste and scent of the active ingredients were masked and the formulation was improved for easier intake by animals. Not only that, but it also has the advantage of being able to administer safely without the need for any processes such as subdividing or grinding.

Following this trend, domestically too, attention is being paid to the development of products specifically for animals. A representative example is the hepatobiliary treatment drug ‘UDC Tablet’ released by Daewoong Pet.

Daewoong Pet’s UDCA Tablet is the only veterinary medicine containing UDCA (Ursodeoxycholic acid) that is designed in tablet form. It is in the form of a chewable tablet that animals can chew without dividing or grinding, improving the convenience of taking UDCA. The bitter taste of the active ingredient was masked using a sweetener to reduce animal resistance. High medication compliance indicates high treatment outcomes. These types of products will provide a better treatment experience for patients, caregivers, and veterinarians alike.

The development of new drugs for companion animals with active ingredients that are completely different from existing drugs on the market is also actively underway. Over the past five years since 2019, about 10 new veterinary drugs have been registered with the U.S. FDA. In Korea, after the launch of GNT Pharma’s ‘Jedacure’ as the first new animal drug in 2021 with the indication for improving cognitive function in dogs, products such as ‘Tistem Joint Pet’ and ‘Joint Vex’, which are treatments for osteoarthritis, are being approved one after another. is receiving.

Research on new drugs for animals under development is also actively underway. Daewoong Pharmaceutical is conducting clinical trials or preparing for approval for new drugs for diabetes and autoimmune diseases for companion animals. Since the Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Quarantine Agency, the regulatory body for veterinary drugs, is also improving regulations on new drug development, it seems obvious that the launch of new veterinary drugs will increase further.

New drugs for animals appear to be focusing on disease areas for which sufficient treatment experience has not been provided previously. This means that diseases that were difficult to treat in the past are now treatable. In addition, new drugs for animals must meet strict and complex approval regulations, including safety, effectiveness, and drug standards and testing methods. At this time, the effectiveness must be sufficiently verified in toxicity studies and clinical trials, so it becomes natural for the drug to be safer and more effective than existing drugs. Through this, we will be able to maximize the quality of life for both animals and people.

Developing drugs specifically for companion animals is difficult through the efforts of pharmaceutical companies alone. Continuous development is possible only when veterinarians actively prescribe it and provide feedback after use. For safe treatment, veterinarians must first consider medicines specifically for animals and lead the development of the market. In the future, we hope that both veterinarians and guardians will understand and utilize the value of veterinary medicines with accurate dosages and ease of administration, as well as innovative new veterinary drugs.