VPT 311: General and Systemic Veterinary Pharmacology (2+1)

Antidiarrhoeal drugs

ANTIDIARRHEAL

Antidiarrheal drugs

• General considerations
  • Acute diarrhea may respond to symptomatic therapy with antidiarrheal drugs, but chronic diarrhea requires a definitive diagnosis and specific therapy.
• Oral rehydration therapy represents a significant advance in treating diarrhea in the absence of vomiting.
• In addition to glucose or aminoacids, or both, these solutions contain sodium chloride, potassium chloride, sodium bicarbonate, and potassium phosphate.
• Sodium-glucose and sodium – aminoacid-linked absorption by the enterocyte remain intact even in the presence of moderate damage to the intestinal villi, providing the driving force for water and electrolyte absorption form the lumen to replace fecal losses.
• Opiates
  • Paregoric is a camphorated tincture of opium
  • Diphenoxylate is a synthetic congener of mepridine
  • Lomotil is diphenoxylate plus atropine