Murphy - Skin Lesions

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missmurphy2010

missmurphy2010

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If you remember, a few months ago, Murphy had a pretty large skin lesion, actually, it was a total tear over the size of a 50 cent piece. She received stitches and it healed fine. While brushing her yesterday, I noticed that she had a few boo boos on her belly, and a few on her sides, and there is now a lesion over the lesion that had healed. Well, after speaking w/ her vet tonight, we may be looking at Cushing's -- one of the classic signs is skin tearing. I'm horribly scared about this -- and don't want to anticipate, but from what she said, it is very dangerous to treat. Does anyone have information on this or have experience with this? She right now has 5-6 boo boos on her body.

Lisa
 
((hug)) So sorry that Miss Murphy is having skin issues, Lisa... I know she's had so many things going on already. I don't know much about Cushings, but has your vet discussed the possibility of a skin biopsy? I know from experience those can give you answers (or at the very least, eliminate many possibilities) very quickly.

Fingers and paws crossed that you're able to get to the bottom of it quickly and get on a treatment protocol that will help Miss Murphy get better soon. At least you can rest assured that you're in good hands with a great vet!!

PS-- If it happens to be that the issue isn't Cushings, but instead an auto-immune disorder like pemphigus, talk to your vet about cyclosporine in lieu of steroids to start. We had amazing success with it, and Willie's pemphigus is in remission and we're hopeful we can have him completely off the meds in 2 months.
 
What is pemphigus? Steroids for a diabetic kitty? She's on inhaled meds for her asthma, and from what I've read, if I'm incorrect, someone please say, Cushing's isn't very common, but can run in conjunction with FD. Boy, this could be a horrible situation for her. She definitely is getting some little crusty sores on her abdomen and a few on her rumpy area. The huge lesion that we have stitched now has another lesion on top of it, almost like a little knife cut.
 
((Lisa)) sending hugs to you and Murphy. I can't help with any advice but I know you will do your best for your sweet Murphy.
 
Thanks, all. Yes, I'm scared to death of what might be happening. I know that diabetics can get sores, and I think even their skin can get thin, but these little scabby areas are a concern, and the fact that the lesion that was stitched and healed, now has another lesion on it. She seems happy and find, but my vet, and thank goodness for her knowledge, said that sometimes, other endocrine issues arise when one is already present. If it were Cushing's, it would be very problematic for me, and very severe consequences for her. Dr. Renee said it is very dangerous waters, especially if you already have a diabetic kitty. I'll try to think positive for now. She's spending the day at the vet's office, with her lab tech boyfriend, David, who will take good care of her. She absolutely adores him. She'll have a nice little warm room all to herself away from the chaos, so she can rest and be comfy.

Keep all fingers crossed that this is something manageable. The Lord's has had his hands on her this long and through so much, I hope he is still holding onto her.

:)
 
Hi, Lisa! Glad to hear that Miss Murphy is in good hands today.

Pemphigus is an auto-immune disease in which the immune system goes haywire and interprets skin cells as the enemy and begins attacking them, resulting in crusty type sores (the "crusty" descriptor is considered a tell-tale pemphigus sign). The sores will lead to hair loss in the given spot, and will heal on their own, but new sores will then develop and spread. Willie started with sores on his belly, and honestly, I didn't know for a long time because I just didn't touch his belly that often. Around Thanksgiving, I noticed it, and took him to the vet.... at that point we got our diabetes diagnosis, but at that point, our then-vet's main suspicion was food allergies. As things progressed, Willie's sores spread outward in a straight line up his sides, in a very symmetrical pattern (symmetry is another tell-tale pemphigus sign), and also spread to his legs/paws and to his face and ears. It was heartbreaking. We finally got him to a dermatologist who did a biopsy and diagnosed him immediately.

Most cats with pemphigus will live with it forever, though a small number can achieve remission and go off their medication. The typical treatment is prednisone or prednisolone, but vets have been finding success with cyclosporine, a drug originally developed to prevent organ rejection in transplant recipients. It suppresses the immune system (but not completely) so that it stops attacking the skin cells. We started with 1 pill per day and Willie achieved remission in about a week and a half. After finishing a month of daily doses, we have just started dosing every other day, which we will do for a month. If that works, we'll go a third month every third day, then finally we'll try to wean him altogether. The nice thing about cyclosporine is that it has had zero effect on his BG#s.

The only way to confirm/rule out the diagnosis (along with some other possibilities, including allergies) is a biopsy, which is why I asked about one before. Since starting treatment, it has been like Willie has taken 10 years off his life... healthy shiny coat, bright happy eyes, great BG #s, tons of energy and lots of spontaneous play, which he hasn't done in years.

I hope that explanation helps... and that you get answers soon!! ((hug)) Keeping you and Miss Murphy in my thoughts and prayers!
 
Hi Lisa,
I'm sorry to hear about Murphy's possible Cushing's. Is she undergoing tests for this? My Bear Man had Iatrogenic Cushings from long term steroid use, but we did not do any treatment for his condition. I know of two other kitties on the Board recently with Cushing's. One (Cheryl and Whiskers) is a recent GA, and another (Amy and Pedro) is doing well. Both were treated with Trilostane. Does Murphy have any other Cushingoid symptoms in addition to the fragile skin, such as a pot belly, generalized muscle wasting, or unkempt hair coat or bald patches?

Here are some links (sorry, some are a bit technical):

http://www.cat-world.com.au/hyperadrenocorticism-cushings-syndrome

http://www.vin.com/VINDBPub/SearchPB/Proceedings/PR05000/PR00106.htm

http://wvc.omnibooksonline.com/data/papers/2010_V114.pdf

http://www.stlouisvma.org/downloads/adrenal diseases jra.pdf

Please keep us updated.
Linda
 
Murphy has had "patchy" spots here and there for quite a while, prior to even her diabetes Dx. She had sebborhea and a very poor coat prior as well, dandruff, greasy coat, her coat on her rump is still a little spiky, although I am not certain that the wive's tale about illness associated with spiky rump fur is true. Now that she is controlled, her fur seems much nicer, and with the sub q's, her fur is much smoother and softer, but yet, we still have those little bumps. Even prior to her Dx, when she was with the other vet who missed the Dx, I mentioned the little papules, or skin tags, that she didn't think anything of, and I'm not sure if those are associated. In addition, she did have that huge open lesion, I mean, this thing was enormous on her left-side abdomen. Now that it has healed, she has yet another lesion on the lesion that healed. Frustrating. She does have a little belly on her, and has since she became ill. I've noticed her fur on her belly is getting a little more spotty in the last year. So, yes, we could be looking at this I guess. But, she can't do oral steroids.
 
Hi Lisa,

Sorry to hear that you are adding more to your already full plate.
Pedro has Cushings - and is doing well on Trilostane. His symptoms were: poor coat and sores and lumps on his tail that wouldn't heal, hair that didn't grow back, pot belly and poor muscle condition. He is unusual in that he has been OTJ! If you end up doing Trilostane - once you have the right dose - its just like insulin - every 12 hours.

Happy to talk with you about it. Just PM me as I'm not on the web alot.
 
Waiting for the results of her labs. But, the d. cati mite is back full force this time. She has little scabby sores on her belly and so back we are to using Ivermectin orally. I've talked my vet in to speaking with the professor at UC Davis who created the FIP vaccination, and is very well versed on immunomodulating therapy. So, if we can get her immune system up and running and get those t cells working properly, she'll hopefully be able to fight off these bacterium she keeps getting. I'd never seen the d. cati mite actually turn into the sores, but yes, they are back.
 
A lot of people probably haven't heard of it, b/c it's so uncommon and is only related to FIV, leukemia and feline diabetes. The demodex mites come from severely suppressed immune systems. Thus, we look back to 2009, and her old vet did not Dx her. That's when the MRSA infections started, and here we are, probably 3rd or 4th time she has had this darned mite -- and this time, they are sores, with scabs. It is a form of mange, but not contagious like sarcoptic mange. But, it is probably the hardest to treat. And, since she is asthmatic, she cannot do a lime dip.

Crap --
 
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