Abstract
OBJECTIVE To determine pharmacokinetics after oral administration of single and multiple doses and to assess the safety of zonisamide in Hispaniolan Amazon parrots (Amazona ventralis).
ANIMALS 12 adult Hispaniolan Amazon parrots.
PROCEDURES Zonisamide (30 mg/kg, PO) was administered once to 6 parrots in a single-dose trial. Six months later, a multiple-dose trial was performed in which 8 parrots received zonisamide (20 mg/kg, PO, q 12 h for 10 days) and 4 parrots served as control birds. Safety was assessed through monitoring of body weight, attitude, and urofeces and comparison of those variables and results of CBC and biochemical analyses between control and treatment groups.
RESULTS Mean ± SD maximum plasma concentration of zonisamide for the single- and multiple-dose trials was 21.19 ± 3.42 μg/mL at 4.75 hours and 25.11 ± 1.81 μg/mL at 2.25 hours after administration, respectively. Mean plasma elimination half-life for the single- and multiple-dose trials was 13.34 ± 2.10 hours and 9.76 ± 0.93 hours, respectively. Pharmacokinetic values supported accumulation in the multiple-dose trial. There were no significant differences in body weight, appearance of urofeces, or appetite between treated and control birds. Although treated birds had several significant differences in hematologic and biochemical variables, all variables remained within reference values for this species.
CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Twice-daily oral administration of zonisamide to Hispaniolan Amazon parrots resulted in plasma concentrations known to be therapeutic in dogs without evidence of adverse effects on body weight, attitude, and urofeces or clinically relevant changes to hematologic and biochemical variables.
