Sammy, 8 y/o Chi on trilostane - Holistic additions?

[Marty Mihara]

Hello! My name is Marty and I have an 8-year-old Chi (Sammy) with Cushing's disease. He was diagnosed about a month ago and has been on Trilastane 6 mg for about 2 weeks with has no apparent side effects. He also doesn't seem to have much improvement either! His presenting symptoms are bloating, increased appetite, thirst, urination, hair loss, and incontinence. I'm wondering how long before I see some improvement? I am also taking him to my holistic vet who gives him acupuncture and may add some Chinese herbs once the Trilastane dose has been determined and he's been on it for a while. Has anyone else used alternative treatments for Cushings? Many Thanks!

[labblab]

Hello Marty, and welcome to you and little Sammy! You'll see I've taken the liberty of moving your reply so as to create a thread that is your very own. This way, it will be easier for our members to reply to you directly. ;)

I'm sorry you're yet to see any improvement in Sammy's problems, but it may be the case that he'll need a larger dose of trilostane before you see results. As long as he does not have any ill effects from the drug, though, it is commonly recommended that the dose remain unchanged for about the first month of treatment in order to see what the maximal benefit is from that dose alone. There are sometimes exceptions, however, depending upon how conservative the dose was to begin with and also how severe the symptoms are remaining. Can you tell us how much Sammy weighs? That will help us judge the size of his starting dose.

The "proof of the pudding" will be monitoring ACTH tests which show you exactly how much Sammy's cortisol is being lowered. Do you have an ACTH test scheduled for him yet? It is generally recommended to test first at the 10-14 day mark, but at a minimum, no later than 30 days after beginning treatment.

Does Sammy have any other known health problems? And can you give us more info about the actual testing that diagnosed the Cushing's?

Sorry for so many questions right off the bat, but your answers will help guide us all forward. Once again, welcome to you both!

Marianne

[molly muffin]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

How is Sammy doing now?

You'll know more once you have a follow up ACTH test to check his cortisol levels. You are looking for a post result between 1.5 - 5.0 ug, and can go up to 9.0ug post if the symptoms are controlled which Sammy's you said isn't at this time.

Let us know how things are.