Is tobradex for dogs

Answer 1

Tobradex, a combination of Tobramycin (an antibiotic that works especially well on eye infections) and Dexamethazone (a synthetic glucocorticoid or steriod) are made by Alcon Labs and are in this specific combination, are specifically targetted at eye infections in humans. Most pharmacuetical concerns market drugs that are intended originally for humans, but may turn out to work effectively for dogs and other animals, and dogs are often part of the testing protocol. However, very few studies are conducted with a focus animal application, and Alcon has no record of any clinical trials invovling dogs at all. That said, dexamethazone has been used for years with canines. Tobramycin, however, has apparently not. It's a very effective antibiotic that works against Gram-negative bacterial infections and is generally more effective (perentally) than gentamycin. The problems for humans are that it's a very potent antibiotic, and has some serous sideeffects, including kidney damamge and deafness (nephrotoxicity and ototoxicity). IV dosage is calculated by weight, although topical administration is far less likely to result in overdose. That said -- the answer? Tobradex, like almost every medication in the veternarian's lexicon, is targetted at humans and, although it may work for pets, is not primarily for pets -- very few medications are. To know if this medication can work for your animal, You'll need to either call your vet on this one, or wait until someone calls me back and let's me know -- and I'll update this page. My non-veternary, non-medical guess is, if you can be sure the infection is bacterial, I can't find a reason it wouldn't work. But I emphasize that this is not commonly done, and I have not yet been able to obtain verification from either the manufacturer, their lab, and AVMA or anyone else. Be careful. I'l do some more research now and get back to here. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi, My dog was prescribed Tobradex three years ago after being diagnosed with uveitis (leading cause of blindness in golden retrievers). These eye drops have done a very good job at keeping the uveitis at bay. She is doing quite well and has only recently started showing some minor side effects in which our vet says there is no concern. If it weren't for the Tobradex she would be blind by now. As I write this she is outside playing with my children, I am happy this drug worked for her. I hope that helps.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------