Trattamento topico della oftalmomiasi esterna da Oestrus ovis: progettazione e sviluppo di un nuovo preparato galenico

IntroductionOphthalmomyiasis is an infection of the eye caused by the larvae of Oestrus ovis, Diptera. Currently, there are no available drugs to treat this condition in humans and mechanical removal of the larvae is the only effective therapy.MethodsThe study was divided into 3 Phases. The first was designed to identify and test “in vitro” new galenic formulation against O. ovis L1 larvae. The second addressed the cytotoxicity of the compounds tested in phase 1 on corneal and conjunctival cells. We assessed the toxicity of different dilutions of Propylene Glycol and then analyzed the combination of Ivermectin with DMSO, Glycol and Glycol + PVP-I. We also tested the 40, 60, 80X dilution of the stock solution. Finally, we tested the compounds in a rat model, in order to assess the in vivo toxicity of the galenic formulations.ResultsIvermectin 1% solution and the combination of Ivermectin 1% + PVP-I 0.6% were found to be significantly better than propylene glycol alone, in terms of time needed to kill Larvae (p=0.0422). MTT assay confirmed low tissue toxicity. In the mouse model, no toxicity was found.ConclusionOur results suggest that Ivermectin 1% and Propylene glycol are both effective against L1 larvae and could be potential candidates for the treatment of ophthalmomyiasis caused by Oestrus ovis.