penicillin reaction!

[poppy43]

Just wondered if any of you have experienced reaction to IM penicillin? Had to give Tiggs his second dose by injection this afternoon and he had the most violent reaction immediately after injecting.....twitching, unsteady on his feet, muscle spasm and thrashing around his stable......had to make a quick exit.
Phoned the vet but was told that it was probably just stinging !!
Looked more like an allergic reaction to me......
Luckily he is ok now but took 20 mins for him to settle and half an hour before we could get back in the stable.
I am sorry this is a long one but would really like to hear from anyone who has experienced similar.
Tiggs is due another 2 doses but WONT be giving it for obvious reasons

 

[maestro]

Think you might have hit a vein! Doesn't happen very often try to draw the plunger back slightly next time to check for blood. No blood inject away.

 

[mat]

I knew of a horse that had anaphalactic shock after penicillin, and eventually died having destroyed its stable!

It was really sad.. I am not trying to scare you but I would keep an eye...

Rupert, the grey in my sig. is allergic to it and suffers bad swelling/shaking/falling over. He also finds it hard to breathe.. he developed his allergy after having penicillin injected into his feet every day for a few months, after getting thrush years ago...

 

[poppy43]

yes did that all clear and pushed it in slowly.Did everything the vet said.

 

[poppy43]

Thanks bbmat....that was my first thought after giving it..... we spent a couple of hours with him and he was back to normal after.......thank goodness... never want to go through that again

 

[pottamus]

Can't say for horses but I am totally allergic to it...avoid the stuff like the plague and have it written on everything just in case I have an accident...don't want that stuff in me again!

 

[Fairynuff]

Change your vet!! Stinging does not produce such a violent reaction. I would pencil it into his passport (the reaction to penicillin) for future ref. M.

 

[cefyl]

Quote from the California Dept of Ag.

< There are some drug reactions specific to certain antibiotics. Just like people, horses can develop allergic reactions to penicillin. This requires previous exposure to the drug, and then is manifested by hives and head swelling, and occasionally, massive constriction of the airways and sudden death. Penicillin is very commonly administered to horses in a formulation known as penicillin procaine G. The procaine is a local anesthetic, related to lidocaine, novacaine and cocaine! It helps to give the formulation a long-acting effect, so that it can be administered only twice a day. When correctly injected into the horse's muscle, it causes no problem. However, if the formulation is accidentally injected into the horse's bloodstream, the procaine goes to the horse's brain and triggers a spectacular reaction (imagine a horse getting a "hit" of cocaine). Most horses begin to tremble violently and throw themselves over backwards. There is no antidote when this occurs and an affected horse will recover in just a few minutes as long as it doesn't damage its skull or spine. Obviously, this reaction can be very dangerous for bystanders. This is why when injecting penicillin into a horse's neck or hindquarters, you should always place the needle first, and watch for blood to fill the hub of the needle. If you see blood, remove the needle and place a clean needle in another site. When you attach the syringe full of penicillin, pull back and again watch for blood to appear in the syringe. Never follow through with the injection if you see blood. Also, the procaine in the formulation becomes more soluble at higher temperatures, increasing the risk of it entering a blood vessel. Therefore, penicillin procaine G should always be kept refrigerated until just before injecting. Very rarely, penicillin can cause the horse to destroy its own red blood cells and the horse shows signs of severe anemia. This reaction usually resolves by stopping the penicillin therapy and giving supportive care. >

Also reported in H&H articlehttp://www.horseandhound.co.uk/horsecare/1370/94857.html

We had a horse many years ago at HOYS (when at Wembley) who trod on a piece of wire in the warm up arena and punctured the sole. The show vet injected penicillin and the horse reacted so violently he broke the partitioning wall in the temporary stable, then went rigid and broke out into a cold sweat. Effect lasted almost 2 hours and the vet just mumbled "must have got an air bubble"!

 

[Tia]

I've never had any adverse reactions to IM penicillin, however having heard of many horses who have, I really don't like to give it willy-nilly, and often prefer to find some alternative.

One of mine did experience "stinging" to it once, but he never had anything like the reaction that yours has had. I think I would be calling the vet out to run some tests on him just to make sure that he isn't allergic to it. The vet seems rather flippant in this situation, in my opinion.