Effects of Vetmedin on BG

Status
Not open for further replies.
J

Jordan Tempel

Member Since 2019
Hello! My cat recently started Vetmedin for an enlarged heart that was discovered via xray. Every time he takes it, his BG skyrockets to around 400. I'm wondering if anyone else has had this?

I did a curve on Saturday, and his BG slowly decreased all day up until his PM dose of Vetmedin. It jumped around 150 pts in a couple hours after going down all day (10 hours). This is what makes me think the meds are causing it.
 
Welcome! I don’t have any experience with Vetmedin, and I don’t remember hearing of any problems with it, but I’ll tag @Olive & Paula as I think she had a kitty on it and might know more.
 
Jordan Tempel said:
Hello! My cat recently started Vetmedin for an enlarged heart that was discovered via xray. Every time he takes it, his BG skyrockets to around 400. I'm wondering if anyone else has had this?

I did a curve on Saturday, and his BG slowly decreased all day up until his PM dose of Vetmedin. It jumped around 150 pts in a couple hours after going down all day (10 hours). This is what makes me think the meds are causing it.
Click to expand...

Very fascinating. The makers of Vetmed states that this drug HAS NOT been evaluated in patients with diabetes! What message are they sending us? I have HEARD it causes diabetes. Do they know this and the evaluation comment is a strange way of sending this message !
My dog has never had an elevated glucose and he is 11 years old with many chemistry panels done on him. He was started on Vetmedin about two months ago. Suddenly his glucose was 700. We have not been able to control it with insulin! The doses of insulin continue to increase.
From your lead , I am going to wean him off Vetmedin and see his new glucose curve. I will report back it may take a couple of weeks.
I spent 48 years in human medicine and almost on a weekly basis heard of serious side effects of medicine. We are all fools to believe that medicines are SAFE. I will report back with the results.
 
C.Gield said:
My dog has never had an elevated glucose and he is 11 years old with many chemistry panels done on him. He was started on Vetmedin about two months ago. Suddenly his glucose was 700. We have not been able to control it with insulin! The doses of insulin continue to increase.
Click to expand...
If Vetmedin is working for your dog, a simple solution could be to have it compounded as Olive and Paula did in Post #3:
Olive & Paula said:
I had a previous cat on vetmedin. It was compounded with 2 other meds into a suspension. Pharmacist was told no added sugar or sweetner since Smokey was diabetic.

It did not affect his glucoses at all. If I were you, check with pharmacist and see if the med contains any sugar or alternative.
Click to expand...
Vetmedin (pimobendan)
Scroll down to the Clinical Pharmacology section:

"Pimobendan is oxidatively demethylated to a pharmacologically active metabolite which is then conjugated with sulfate or glucuronic acid and excreted mainly via feces."

The section goes on with more detail, but I thought the sulfate or glucuronic acid part was worth looking into.

It turns out glucuronic acid is a mild organic acid derived from glucose by a simple oxidation reaction. The reaction is facilitated by the enzyme glucose oxidase (fungi) and glucose dehydrogenase (bacteria such as Gluconobacter). Microbial production of gluconic acid is the preferred method and it dates back to several decades.
https://hrcak.srce.hr/file/161891

I could be way off base, but that might be what's causing your dog's glucose levels to rise. Perhaps it's worth looking into?

The solution could be as simple as having the med compounded without any sweeteners/sugars as Paula did for her cat.


In any case, wishing you the best of luck figuring it out! I know first-hand how maddening this can all become...
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top