Clinicopathological aspects of imidocarb dipropionate toxicity in horses

Abstract

Six groups of four adult horses were twice injected intramuscularly at a 24 hour interval with 0, 2, 4, 8, 16 or 32 mg/kg of imidocarb dipropionate (IMDP) and monitored for 21 days. The LD50 of IMDP for 21 days after injection was two doses of 15.99 +/- 1.49 mg/kg with mortalities occurring within six days following the first injection. Increasing levels of IMDP were correlated with increasing rates of morbidity, mortality, local and systemic reactions, increasing levels of blood urea nitrogen, serum aspartate amino transferase, serum sorbitol dehydrogenase, serum creatine phosphokinase, neutrophilia and increasing severity of renal, hepatic and pulmonary lesions. Mortalities were attributed to acute renal cortical tubular necrosis and acute periportal hepatic necrosis induced by two injections of 16 or 32 mg/kg of IMDP.