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What
is the IONTOPATCH ?
By
Deborah A. Powell
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- This is an excellent
alternative for the delivery of the most commonly used
anti inflammatory, dexamthasone. In the article "Joint
Disease "Horse Sept.01 dexamethasone sodium phosphate
was still listed as the premier drug of choice for
reducing inflammation. Dexamethasone's reasonable
price makes it even more desirable.
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- There are down sides
in the traditional method of delivery with injections,
creating potential for infection and a certain amount
of discomfort (ie; injecting the hocks can be quite
painful) and causes some tissue damage. With repeated
injections for chronic conditions, the pain, tissue
damage, and even infections became a viscous
unpleasant cycle.
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- The IontoPatch allows
you to deliver dexamethasone direct to the site
safely. It's done by a small battery operated pad that
ionizes the drug applied for direct infusion into the
tissues. (Learn
More). Not
unlike all of the new transdermal patches on the
market for smoking, pain control, or birth control. No
needles, No tissue damage, and no chance of infection.
(IontoPatch
Catalog Page)
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- Simple to
Use:
- Clean the site and
wet the area to be treated equal to the size of the
pad. Then apply 1.6cc of Dexamethasone to the negative
side of the pad and the same amount of saline (water)
to the positive side. The pad has adhesive edges and
sticks well to the site. I've used the IontoPatch with
good results in numerous locations on the legs for
splints, bumps, hocks, and suspensory swellings. On
lower leg applications its easy, I add a little
masking tape and vet wrap to protect and guarantee a
continuous seal. In the hock area they squish well
into the grooves and stay put. Put one pad on each
side of the hock.
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- The IontoPatch works
as a time release system. This slow release is
complete in 24 hours then you remove the pad and
discard. One application can produce up to 50%
reduction in swelling. On a hard bump that was 30 days
old the same reduction applied, but took an additional
four treatments to reduce from a golf ball size lump
to a slight smooth protrusion. By replacing water with
Sarapin on the positive side you have additional pain
relief that is quite soothing to the horses. Most
veterinarians stock Sarapin and Dexamethasone in a
standard 4mg/ml dosage and this works well. However,
you can increase the potential for results by upping
Dexamethasone to 10mg/ml as suggested by the study
done by Andreis J. Kaneps, A. Morrie Craig, and Karen
Walker at the College of Veterinary Medicine, Oregon
State University (99). The best bet would be to
contact a compounder like;
- *Columbine Drug, who
specialize in phoresing medications. By using
specialized phoresing medications, you get no unneeded
ingredients and more transferable Ions.
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- If you feel the
IontoPatch is not going to fit a certain location the
traditional method of using a phoresor would be a good
option. When using a phoresor the medication is
delivered in 10-15 minutes per polarity. This means
delivering a negative drug only will take 10-15
minutes and delivering an additional positive drug
will take another 10-15 minutes. The drugs are all
applied at once so the additional time is a simply an
instrument function. Quick Links: Iomed
Phoresors -
Equine
Kit -
Iomed
Electrodes
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- The article Update:
"New Weapons for the Lameness Battle", Practical
Horseman (Apr 02) mentions that phoresing might not be
as successful as injection due to the lesser amount of
6cc of drug used. With the improvements in drug
delivery electrodes such as the IOMED we are
successful with 2cc -3.5cc of dexamethasone at 4mg/ml.
Imagine what the potential might be by using 2cc of
dex at 10/mg/ml of pure phoresing product. And because
of the low dosages of medications and the noninvasive
procedure you can treat as often as needed with no
side affects.
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- Treatment can be
administered by your vet or you can self administer.
The battery operated pads are as easy as putting on a
band aid. With minimal training using a phoresor is
not too difficult to master. Your vet may be able to
rent or loan you an instrument. You will need to work
with your vet to obtain the medication and determined
the amount of treatments needed. Your vet can write
you a prescription for submission to a compounder for
medications that are specially made for
IontoPhoresis.
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- *Columbine Drug 970
663-4600, Loveland, CO
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- Matrix
Therapy Products Corp.
- 23621 S Upper
Highland
- Beavercreek
OR
- 888
764-5115
- email:Deborah
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