Dophexine® of great value for poultry

Bromhexine, the active ingredient of Dophexine® 20 mg/g, has been widely used for respiratory conditions in calves for many years. The veterinary medicine was previously only registered in the Netherlands and only for calves. Due to the great success of this product in the veal sector, Dopharma registered Dophexine® 20 mg/g in several European countries and for multiple animal species at the end of last year. Therefore, Dophexine® can now be used not only for calves but also for pigs, chickens, turkeys, and ducks.

How does bromhexine work1?

Bromhexine is a mucoregulator. Mucus is an important component of the non-specific defence mechanisms in the respiratory tract. Due to continuous breathing, the respiratory tract is in intensive contact with the external environment. Mucus ensures that pathogens entering the respiratory tract along with the inhaled air, do not immediately come into contact with the tissue bronchial and alveolar tissue. Additionally, together with the ciliated epithelium, mucus ensures that the pathogens can be effectively transported upwards to the throat. This interplay between mucus and cilia is essential as the first line of defence. For the proper functioning of this clearance of the respiratory tract, it is important that the mucus is sufficiently liquid and not too thick and elastic. Characteristic of pathological mucus are high viscosity and elasticity.

Bromhexine has two important effects:

  1. Bromhexine activates the secretion of the seromucous glands in the respiratory system. Due to the increased production of goblet cells specifically in the airways, the secretion becomes thinner and more watery, thereby restoring the viscosity and elasticity of the protective mucus layer.
  2. Additionally, bromhexine promotes mucus mobilisation through the cilia.

Both effects contribute to an effective restoration of bronchial drainage. This improves the functioning and defence mechanisms of the lungs.

Secondary Effects of Bromhexine

When you search the scientific literature for the properties of bromhexine, you’ll notice that various, at first glance, very interesting effects are described. For instance, the concentration of various antibiotics in the serum and nasal secretions increases with simultaneous administration of bromhexine. Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties are also attributed to bromhexine. However, these beneficial effects are quite small and do not compare to the beneficial effect of bromhexine as a mucoregulator!

How can you use Dophexine® 20 mg/g in practise?

Dophexine® is used as a mucolytic treatment for respiratory conditions. This is done both as monotherapy and in combination with antibiotics..

In bacterial infections

During a bacterial respiratory infection, the consistency of bronchial secretions will deteriorate. Treatment with Dophexine® will restore bronchial drainage and improve the lung’s defence capability.

Dophexine® is used as monotherapy for mild respiratory infections or respiratory infections that generally respond poorly to antibiotic treatment. For severe bacterial infections, antibiotic treatment is usually chosen. Dophexine® can then be used as a follow-up treatment, for instance, because full recovery has not yet occurred after antibiotic treatment, or to prevent recurrence. The composition of the mucus and the function of the cilia might not be fully restored after a few days, causing animals to struggle to clear their airways adequately. In this case as well, treatment with Dophexine® can be beneficial.

In viral infections

There are no curative veterinary medicines registered for the treatment of viral infections in poultry. To reduce respiratory symptoms, bromhexine can be used.

Dophexine® 20 mg/g is highly water-soluble¹.

Dophexine® contains 20 mg of bromhexine hydrochloride per gram of product. Bromhexine is not very water-soluble, which is why citric acid has been added to Dophexine® as an important auxiliary substance. This allows for the preparation of an acidic, concentrated presolution without any issues for use with a dosing system.

The medicated drinking water is stable for 24 hours. Therefore, when setting a doser at 1% and a water consumption of 10% of the body weight/day, a presolution of 25 grams of Dophexine® per litre of water is usually prepared.

The maximum solubility of Dophexine® in water is 100 g/l at 20°C. In the table below, you will find the solubility at two different concentrations.

Concentration of Dophexine® in water at 20 ⁰CSolubility Time
10 grams of Dophexine®/litre3 minutes
100 grams of Dophexine®/litre (max)15 minutes

Additionally, Dophexine® dissolves quickly in drinking water. The graph below compares the solubility rate of Dophexine® with that of a competing product.

Summary1 of the characteristics of Dophexine®

Concentration20 mg bromhexine hydrochloride /gram of Dophexine®
Pharmaceutical formPowder for use in drinking water/milk
Target speciesCattle (calves), pigs, chickens, turkeys, ducks
IndicationMucolytic treatment of congested respiratory tract
Dosage2,5 g of Dophexine® per 100 kg of body weight per day, administered during 3 to 10 consecutive days.
Withdrawal period pig, chicken, turkey, duck Meat and offal: 0 days
Not for use in birds producing eggs for human consumption, during and 4 weeks before the laying period.
Withdrawal period calfMeat and offal: 2 days
Not authorised for use in animals producing milk for human consumption.
Shelf lifeAs packaged for sale: 30 months.
After first opening of the immediate packaging: 3 months.
After reconstitution in drinking water according to directions: 24 hours.
After dilution in milk (replacer) according to directions: 6 hours.