Organophosphorus veterinary medicines

Organophosphorus Veterinary Medicines Table 10.5 Some ectoparasites of sheep. 

Veterinary medicines must be used in accordance with their UK licence and as directed by a veterinary surgeon. Withdrawal periods between the end of the treatment and marketing of the animal for meat, must be not less than 14 days and/or three times the recommended time, whichever is the greater. Any meat from animals treated with growth promoters, artificial hormones, or organophosphorus and organochlorine pesticides cannot be sold as organic. 

Although this aspect is irrelevant to the assessment of residues and their implications for consumer safety, no account of the use of veterinary drugs would be complete without some passing mention which will restrict itself to considerations of safety in use of medicines rather than safety in their manufacture. Many formulations used in veterinary medicine offer very little scope for significant occupational exposure. Tablets and capsules for example ensure that occupational exposure is minimal, if not non-existent. However, operator exposure does occur and means need to be taken to reduce this. Organophosphorus compounds are... 

T. C. Marrs, P. Edwards, Human adverse reactions to organophosphorus compounds used in veterinary medicines in Veterinary Pharmacovigilance. Adverse Reactions to Veterinary Medicinal Products, ed. K. N. Woodward, Wiley-Blackwell, Chichester, 2009, pp. 517 528. 

A special group was established to review adverse reactions to veterinary medicinal products in humans, the Appraisal Panel for Human Suspected Adverse Reactions. By 2000, the Appraisal Panel had considered a large number of adverse reactions in humans, including many relating to exposure to organophosphorus-containing dips. As a result, the Appraisal Panel realised that there was a similarity between the reported signs and symptoms in... 

Compounds such as diazinon, an organophosphorus compound, are highly toxic to earthworms and other terrestrial organisms as well as to bees. However, concern has been expressed over the toxicity of the macrocyclic lactone endectocides used widely in large animal veterinary medicine. These... 

Veterinary Products Committee, Advice on the Report of the Institute of Occupational Medicine. Organophosphorus Sheep Dips, VPC, July, 1999. 

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