4/18 Tessie Lou AMPS 291 - Prednisone Question

Status
Not open for further replies.
tessielou

tessielou

Member Since 2010
Good morning, LL!
Tessie was diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis last week, after an ultrasound was done. I will get the results of her blood panel that was sent to Texas A&M this Friday.

In the meantime, my vet says that her colleagues who attended a recent workshop on pancreatitis told her prednisone is believed to be the most effective drug to give cats, even with the possibility of it causing diabetes. The reason being, it treats the inflammation itself.

My question is, on an already diabetic cat like Tessie, what are the dangers/downside of trying this treatment?

Thanks!
 
Hi guys .. no advice here on the prednisone question .. but I'm sure others will be along soon to help figure it out .. I'm glad you got your results back and know what you are dealing with now ... have a great day guys!
 
Any steroid, like prednisone, will raise BG. How much depends on the cat. There are several kitties here who's FD was steroid induced. Simon's (Georgia) BG had a sharp increase with a steroid ear drop. There are other cats who's numbers were only mildly influenced by a steroid.

I tend to think that your decision should depend on how symptomatic Tessie is. Insulin can always be worked around the steroid if you and your vet thinks it's necessary.
 
Thanks, Devon. I agree, knowing what you're dealing with is half the battle. Now, the other half is trickier...

Sienne, it's so hard to tell with Tessie if/when she's in pain. Only outward signs are those spasms she has, and of course, the high BG's, even after 2 dose increases.

I'm thinking to wait for the test results from Texas, then if they bear out the pancreatitis prelim diagnosis, then go with a LOW dose of pred for a short time and see what happens with her symptoms. Does that sound reasonable? Then, of course, the other question is, whether or not to raise her insulin again now, or wait and see what the pred does? What do you think?
 
Sandy: no asnwer on the insulin dosage questions....far wiser minds need to look at that one! YOu are giving her bupe though right? IMHO, it's probably best to wait and see what the results are before you decide whether to do the pred or not and then maybe some of our experienced folks can suggest a good dose for the juice. How does she seem to feel...is she playing, quiet, etc? I hope she is much better soon. I hope the spasms have lessened.
 
poor tessie lou - it sucks to not feel good. i hope you can get the help you need to figure this out and get her back to feeling healthy!
 
I would get all the facts, as long as Tessielou isnt suffering, and then make your decision,..I have seen many fd cats be put on Pred. for many different ailments & many are very successful--
Wishing Tessielou better health & Healing Vines now that you have some idea of what is wrong--
Big Comfort Hugs from us!!!
 
Marjorie and Gracie said:
Sandy: no asnwer on the insulin dosage questions....far wiser minds need to look at that one! YOu are giving her bupe though right? IMHO, it's probably best to wait and see what the results are before you decide whether to do the pred or not and then maybe some of our experienced folks can suggest a good dose for the juice. How does she seem to feel...is she playing, quiet, etc? I hope she is much better soon. I hope the spasms have lessened.
Click to expand...

Hi Marje, the spasms have lessened--at least I haven't witnessed any lately. Unfortunately, she is not a player. She is quiet most of the time, but doesn't sleep peacefully very much, which makes me wonder if low level pain/discomfort is keeping her awake. I am not giving her bupe yet. The vet wanted me to try 1/8 tab of Tramadol first, before we go to bupe. She had that bad reaction to 1/4 tab of Tramadol, so I have not done tried the lesser dose yet. I haven't witnessed spasms, obvious discomfort, etc., and plus I admit I'm kinda scared to do it! Anyway, I think you're right, it's best to wait for the results for the dose change, and then decide.

Thanks Roni and Julie, we appreciate the support, as always! Roni, good to know others have used pred successfully. That helps.

Have a great Monday everyone. I'm off to buy more paint! For some reason, I keep wanting to buy different shades of GREEN for every room! :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
I'm so sorry to hear that Tessie Lou is not feeling well and I hope you can get to the bottom of things soon. I don't have any advice on the prednisone except that you will probably know right away if Tessie Lou will react to it. It only took 2 doses of the steroid ear drops for Simon's bg to shoot up. I think he is just overly sensitive to any medicine I put him on so I'm sure he is not the norm. Sending healing thoughts and prayers.
 
Poor little Tessie Lou...sounds like she doesn't feel at all like herself. We'll be anxious, as you are, to hear the results of the fPLI, Sandy.

RE: your comments about feeding on our condo. I'll try to remember to send you some links on some great discussions Jill put on our condo back a while.

Hope you had a wonderful date night with DH.
 
Georgia and Simon said:
I'm so sorry to hear that Tessie Lou is not feeling well and I hope you can get to the bottom of things soon. I don't have any advice on the prednisone except that you will probably know right away if Tessie Lou will react to it. It only took 2 doses of the steroid ear drops for Simon's bg to shoot up. I think he is just overly sensitive to any medicine I put him on so I'm sure he is not the norm. Sending healing thoughts and prayers.
Click to expand...

Thanks for stopping by, Georgia. I think Tessie Lou is like Simon--hypersensitive to medications. Tessie actually had another spasm tonight--it only lasted a couple of minutes, but I went ahead and gave her 1/8 tablet of tramadol. She is obviously feeling better, starts purring as soon as I touch her--just a bit nervous acting, but not bad. So, maybe it will work for the pain. Fingers crossed!

Hi Marje, yes it will be so good to get the results on Friday. The feeding links would be appreciated, but don't spend a lot of time digging. You have ENOUGH on your plate with your girl! :smile: DH and I went to Limitless--it was pretty good, but the best part was being out with Mike (yep, mine is a Mike, too)! :-D

I'll be up again tonight to make sure she handles the tramadol ok, so I'm going to go visit some condos now. Have a good night!
 
Hi Sandy,

It is my understanding that pancreatitis is very painful. If she is not being given Bupe or Tramadol for pain, what is she being given?
I hope she is feeling better soon.
 
Cheryl & Whiskers (GA) said:
Hi Sandy,

It is my understanding that pancreatitis is very painful. If she is not being given Bupe or Tramadol for pain, what is she being given?
I hope she is feeling better soon.
Click to expand...

Hi Cheryl, and thanks. She is on Tramadol. The vet preferred her being on that to Bupe, as Bupe is I understand a much stronger medication. So as long as her pain is mild (how do you know?), we will use the Tramadol. She had a good weekend and didn't act in pain at all, and no spasms, so I didn't give her any. Tonight she had another episode of spasms--lasted a minute or so. So, I gave her the reduced dose of Tramadol, per vet's instructions. That was 5 hours ago, and she has tolerated it well. Lots of purring and seems happy, but just a bit nervous acting. More alert than normal. Not bad, though. I understand the Bupe really sedates them, which I would hate. She's already so inactive, and with her needing to lose weight...seems like Tramadol is better option for her now as long as it helps the pain.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top