The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted emergency authorization for an over-the-counter screwworm drug that can be given to pets, days after an infectious pest was detected in a dog in New Mexico. Pet owners can purchase nitenpyram tablets to treat New World screwworm infections in cats and dogs that are at least two pounds and four weeks old.

Screwworm Infections

Screwworm has made a return to the US after the country went a decade without a case. The disease is spread by parasitic flies, which lay eggs in open wounds or body openings and feed on the tissue or flesh of warm-blooded animals. The eggs hatch into maggots and cause a painful wound, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

There is still little risk to pets, experts say. Dog owners can still safely take their pets on routine walks unless they have fresh, untreated injuries, according to Sharon Nachman, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital in New York.

Nitenpyram is the first generic drug the FDA has approved to treat the parasitic infection. It has also issued 10 other emergency approvals and three conditional approvals for screwworm drugs. The medication, which comes in tablet form, kills most screwworm larvae within hours of the first dose.

Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.