Ramone 05/07 amps 306 - Appointment booked for IGF-1/IAA & Cushings

Jerica&ramone

Jerica&ramone

Member
So I've made Ramone's appt to get all the tests done. May 15th

Now my vet is suggesting to do urine Cortisol/Creatinine first to their lab to screen for Cushings to rule that out first... then if that comes out normal Cushings is off the table but if its abnormal it doesn't necessarily rule it in and then he goes in for the day to do the dexamethasone test and if that test comes out normal then send bloodwork to Michigan to check for IGF-1/IAA

I did say I want to check for everything, does it make sense for us to check into Cushing's first and then check IGF-1/ IAA.

I'm absolutely clueless on this and I want to trust my vet has Ramone and my best interest at heart.

Just got quoted a grand basically to have everything done.. I'm in Canada, BC. I'm willing to do this all but what a waste it would be if I could just get the IGF-1 test done and not have to bother with the Cushing's stuff?

But I guess it would or could be a waste either way if the IGF-1/IAA tests came back negative too... Guess I just buck up and do it ???

Thoughts/opinions? Experiences??
 
I only have a minute but I'll write what I can. Hopefully others will chime in. Here at my vet in California, to do the IGF-1 I think it was around $200 for everything including blood draw, postage, test, etc. I never even considered doing the Cushings test because I had been told it was even rarer, and the fact that Rocket had no skin issues. I haven't read all of your threads, but I'm thinking unless you have reason to believe Cushings could be an issue, maybe wait on that? Just my two cents. As for it being a "waste" if the IGF-1 test is negative... believe me, if Rocket's IGF-1 test had been negative, I think it would have felt like the best 200 bucks I'd ever spent. :)
 
Skip the Cushings for now, it is less common. Get a quote for just IAA and IGF-1. My vet also added a complete bloodwork, urinalysis and urine culture, and it was under $1000. I am in BC too, but that was a few years ago,
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Skip the Cushings for now, it is less common. Get a quote for just IAA and IGF-1. My vet also added a complete bloodwork, urinalysis and urine culture, and it was under $1000. I am in BC too, but that was a few years ago,
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Okay I will ask for just those test first and then pending the results of those then we can check for Cushings.

I'm just nervous as I don't want to undermine her or offend her by asking for just the IGF-1 and IAA test first as she is the one suggesting this be the course of action to take.

I've just read a little bit about Cushing's and while Ramone shows some symptoms of it, no skin issues whatsoever though, he does symptoms of IAA and Acro too...

@Karen&Rocket Yes, you're right no matter what none of this will be waste. I need to find out what's going on with my boy. He's 13 but he's got a lot more miles left in him, he's a fiesty sweet boy.

We aren't going in until next Friday so I've got some time to get this sorted out. I guess I am the paying customer so she should be okay with my request... I just don't want to rub her the wrong way - I like my vet a lot.

Wish me luck. I feel really good that I've finally made the appointment.

Keep you all posted!!
 
I liked my vet a lot too. Had a long standing relationship through my pets and through the local shelter where I worked part time. I used the phrase “humour me” a lot. One in four diabetic cats has acromegaly. The paper documenting that can out in 2015, so fairly recent, probably not many vets have seen it. As long as your vet likes to learn, as mine did, you should be OK. Shortly after Neko was diagnosed (first acro client), she found another one at the clinic. She felt good having an explanation about why that cat was so hard to regulate.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
I liked my vet a lot too. Had a long standing relationship through my pets and through the local shelter where I worked part time. I used the phrase “humour me” a lot. One in four diabetic cats has acromegaly. The paper documenting that can out in 2015, so fairly recent, probably not many vets have seen it. As long as your vet likes to learn, as mine did, you should be OK. Shortly after Neko was diagnosed (first acro client), she found another one at the clinic. She felt good having an explanation about why that cat was so hard to regulate.
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Thank you. I'm going to chat with her next week. Will reference "just humor me" And if the IGF-1 tests come back negative, THEN we can do the Cushing's test.

Did 8 units this AM and +3 257 (14.3) nice to actually see some type of a dip in his #'s. :cat: Lets see if he can keep it going!!
 
Leoberry was at 13.0 units by the time I got him tested in August 2018. But he had skyrocketed from 7.0/8.0 units just the previous month, and regulation was nearly impossible. Acro testing is important, the earlier you can get it done.

For Ramone at 8.0 units/dose, the test will probably confirm Acro. And it's a good time to get his test.

One thing we have consistently heard in the forum - is the lack of Acro expertise by vets. As Wendy said, at least 1 in 4 diabetic cats have some Acro. And the estimate for diabetic cats is 1 in 100. So when you look at cat patients, that would be 0.25% of them have Acro. The low incidence of Acro may have vets focusing on more prevalent health issues. I was also lucky with our cat-only vet, who helped as much as possible. We have heard of some vets who were not as helpful with Acro, or diabetes.
 
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