Did Oscar's Diabetes start with a steroid injection

[Oscar & Mom Sheila]

In 2010 I took Oscar to the then-new vet (no longer a vet) at our old clinic on 2 occasions. First time was for a skin flare-up. The vet gave him a 1.0 ml Depo-Medrol 20mg/ml long acting Glucocorticoid. 2 1/2 weeks later he was scheduled for a dental cleaning. Upon arriving home I received a call that Oscar couldn't have surgery that day, as blood work indicated he was a newly diagnosed diabetic. Another vet prescribed glyburide shortly after.
I've hear tell that steroids can induce diabetes in animals. Is it possible that this is how Oscar contracted diabetes? Also, is it likely there's potential for him to go into remission (it's been 6 years now) OR will this be permanent for him? I am very fortunate that he is so cooperative with all the fuss.
No longer on glyburyde. Now on Caninsulin 2x day.

 

[Tuxedo Mom]

Steroids can certainly cause diabetes in some kitties. Using glyburide is not a good approach however, since it actually causes the pancreas to work harder producing insulin, when what is really needed is for the pancreas to "rest". How long ago did Oscar start Caninsulin and what dose is he currently on? Also are you home testing? Caninsulin is a harsher, faster acting insulin than the long acting types and in many kitties does not give proper coverage for the whole 12 hours. Home testing is important to make sure the preshot numbers are safe to give a shot and to track how well your kitty is responding to the insulin.

 

[Oscar & Mom Sheila]

Oscar's old vet was in Cape Breton & had him on glyburide (2010 to 2014). When we returned to Ontario in 2014 our present vet put Oscar on Caninsulin in the morning and glyburide in the evening. At that point we were naive & reluctant to give up on using glyburide. It was an event recently where Oscar's balance was off that prompted a visit to the vet. His BG was 1.3 and he was given something to sweeten. At this point the vet insisted that he go on insulin only. I've noticed a marked improvement in Oscar since going on full insulin. The doses are 1.5 units each time. We now do home-testing regularly. Test, feed, shoot.

 

[Tuxedo Mom]

Our previous vet was in Cape Breton (2010 to 2014) & had him on glyburide. When we returned to Ontario in 2014 our present vet put Oscar on Caninsulin in the morning and glyburide in the evening. At that point we were naive & reluctant to give up on using glyburide. It was an event recently where Oscar's balance was off that prompted a visit to the vet. His BG was 1.3 and he was given something to sweeten. At this point the vet insisted that he go on insulin only. I've noticed a marked improvement in Oscar since going on full insulin. The doses are 1.5 units each time. We now do home-testing regularly. Test, feed, shoot.

YIKES!!! 1.3 is a serious hypo number!!! That is exactly why home-testing is so important. Caninsulin is a harsher, faster acting insulin than the more popular long acting types like Lantus, Levemir and Prozinc. It usually will start working at +1-+2 hours after the shot and "peaks" at +3-+5 hours after shot. Testing before each shot and again at +2 or +3 hours after shot will give a good picture on how well the insulin is working.

Since you are home testing it would be very useful of you could set up a spreadsheet to record your testing data. I also am in Canada and use the same number system as you..mmol/L so you would want to use this spreadsheet format:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1JQ136YHkxNhhku9AML_OKGHkrg3Ixe27BWAdWONlnP0/edit?usp=sharing

You can enter your numbers on the "world" tab and it will automatically convert them to US numbers on the US tab. many of the people on here use the US number system, so this makes it easier for them to understand the numbers.

Instructions for setting it up are here:

http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/fdmb-spreadsheet-instructions.130337/

If you need any help just ask. There are a few "spreadsheet gurus" here that can get it sorted out in no time.


ETA Also do you use a human meter or a pet meter. Perhaps you could add that to your signature since there is a difference in the readings. Thanks

 

[Oscar & Mom Sheila]

Will be checking into the info you sent. I'm a slow learner so will take a bit of time to get up & running. We use a human meter (hubby is a diabetic). I added the meter type to my signature.

 

[Tuxedo Mom]

At the top of this page you will see your name on the left side. Just hold your cursor point over your name and a drop down box will appear. On the left side of the drop down box the second item will be "Signature". I had to get a lot of help with setting up my spreadsheet and signature and such when I first joined up almost 2 years ago. I was totally lost