Hypo PMPS 71 Alphatrak reading.....going up

[MsBliss]

Ginger was 71 on her PMPS so out came the hypo tool kit and the high carbs. Within 45 minutes she was up to 167. But after treating a hypo episode, how do you normalize and get back to normal? Since you can't give insulin, and they are on high carbs, by the morning the glucose will be sky high. How do you balance out again?

 

[Elizabeth and Bertie]

Hi,
Was that 71 12 hours after her previous shot?
That number was low but not necessarily a hypo number (although we don't know if she dropped even lower than that at some point).
(I do see that you're using Alphatrak meter).

What exactly did you give Ginger to raise the blood glucose? (That may affect her levels later on).

Eliz

 

[Elizabeth and Bertie]

But after treating a hypo episode, how do you normalize and get back to normal? Since you can't give insulin, and they are on high carbs, by the morning the glucose will be sky high. How do you balance out again?

After hypo a cat will often be more sensitive to insulin. So, great care needs to be taken with the dosage (which will need to be reduced), and it will also be important to monitor the blood glucose to check that the reduced dose is still OK for the cat.

A skipped shot isn't the end of the world. Many of us have given 'fur shots' just by accident. (And a few of us have just forgotten to give the shot on occasion! )

Any high numbers you see later on will probably be a combination of a bounce (body releasing stored glucose to counteract the low number (this can take up to several days to clear)); the insulin 'depot' running low; and any high carb food you've fed. Basically though, you just have to ride it out... Things will settle into their groove again pretty soon.

Eliz

 

[MsBliss]

Hi,
Was that 71 12 hours after her previous shot?
That number was low but not necessarily a hypo number (although we don't know if she dropped even lower than that at some point).
(I do see that you're using Alphatrak meter).

What exactly did you give Ginger to raise the blood glucose? (That may affect her levels later on).

Eliz

Yes, it was 12 hours after her previous shot. It might have been lower earlier, but I had not tested, not suspecting anything, She has a drnnken, wonky, walk due to arthritis and bad knees, so the tells we normally use to watch for hypo don't show up easily with her. I gave her a Friskies Concoction--very gravy filled, and it brought her up pretty quickly, and she stayed up. She was 400 this morning.

 

[MsBliss]

After hypo a cat will often be more sensitive to insulin. So, great care needs to be taken with the dosage (which will need to be reduced), and it will also be important to monitor the blood glucose to check that the reduced dose is still OK for the cat.

A skipped shot isn't the end of the world. Many of us have given 'fur shots' just by accident. (And a few of us have just forgotten to give the shot on occasion! )

Any high numbers you see later on will probably be a combination of a bounce (body releasing stored glucose to counteract the low number (this can take up to several days to clear)); the insulin 'depot' running low; and any high carb food you've fed. Basically though, you just have to ride it out... Things will settle into their groove again pretty soon.

Eliz

Thank you for this. I didn't know about all these factors.....She has been lower than normal today, because she's been overly high for so long. This morning, she was 400 and I lowered her dose a bit. She was 102 at +9, and tonight her pmps was 195. I may have given her too much Lantus for tonight's shot. I gave her the same dose she had this morning, but a little fatter. It's going to be a long night.....