In early May 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved a conditional license to Elanco Animal Health Inc for a new parvo treatment that uses antibodies. Until now, veterinarians only could provide so-called "supportive care" rather than an actual canine parvovirus treatment. In other words, this is pretty big news. Unfortunately, it'll be a while before it's available. Here's why.
UPDATE (late) September 2023 - The company expects full approval in 2024, but some veterinarians already have access to the monoclonal antibody treatment for puppies with parvo.
What Happens Next
Veterinarians won't be able to buy the new parvo treatment from the company until each state also gives approval. That means it'll be a while before the monoclonal antibody therapy is available to dogs or puppy sick with canine parvovirus.
How the New Parvo Treatment Works
- Basically, the monoclonal antibodies add extra immune system oomph.
- It's administered by veterinary teams just once via intravenous (IV).
- It'll be available to puppies with canine parvovirus who are 8 weeks old and older.
Learn more about how monoclonal antibodies work: "The antibodies generated by this immune response are proteins that have high specificity and affinity for the antigen/ molecule they were generated against."
Here's kind of what parvo looks like. Neat? Sure, but quite deadly.
Treatment Goals
The company says the goals for the new parvo treatment include:
- Shorter hospitalization timelines
- Less need for other supportive (not therapeutic) options
- More affordable treatments overall
- More effective than supportive care alone
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