muscle tremors

[juditykent]

Hi. I'd be grateful for anyone's input, please. My 12 year-old staffie was diagnosed around 3 months ago with pituitary Cushings, and is on Vetoryl - 50 mg dosage (lowered from 60 mg). His appetite is back to normal, he's not drinking excessively any more and his energy levels are much better than just before his diagnosis. He has lost a lot of muscle, however, particularly from his front legs and shoulders (and has therefore lost weight), and he now has intermittent muscle tremors, especially when resting. They don't seem to be causing him any distress, I don't think, and the information in the Vetoryl packet does say that muscle tremors are one of the "mild, adverse effects" of the drug. The vet doesn't seem unduly worried about it (but I'm not entirely confident that he really knows a huge amount about Cushings, to be honest) - does anyone else have any experience of this, please?

[labblab]

Hello and welcome to you and your boy!

Yes, we have had other members who have worried over unexplained tremoring episodes. My own Cushpup, a Lab, suffered from intermittent involuntary tremoring episodes across his shoulder blades that made him look as though he was shivering. For him, the episodes happened most often when he was sitting down or at rest -- even when he was sleeping. Sometimes he would jerk himself awake, they were that severe. They began before he started trilostane treatment, worsened significantly when he first started the drug, and then ended up stopping entirely a few months down the road.

We never did figure out what caused them. Through the years, we have had other members here who reported similar issues with their dogs, both using trilostane and Lysodren (and also dogs not yet being treated at all). I've always wondered whether such tremors just somehow relate to rapidly changing cortisol levels. But the good news is that they didn't really seem to bother my dog at all -- it was ME that was going crazy trying to figure them out. :o

Can you tell us a bit more about your boy's diagnostic process and testing history? Also, has he had a recent ACTH monitoring test, just to make sure his cortisol level is within proper range? Thanks in advance for any additional info.

Marianne

[juditykent]

Many thanks for your reply - much appreciated! It's always a relief to hear that someone has had the same experience (I know that that's what this place is all about, of course). My boy (Zootie) was diagnosed a few months ago after all the relevant blood tests, an ultrasound and a needle biopsy on his liver (the problem was not thought to be Cushing's, to start with). He started off on 20 mg of Vetoryl (at my insistence - the vet wanted to start with 60 mg), then it was upped to 50 mg, then to 60 mg, at which point the vet was happy with the ACTH readings. His appetite was down at that point, however, so on reflection the dose was lowered again to 50 mg, and his appetite now seems to be back around normal. The tremors have been a constant, however, since he began the Vetoryl treatment. It would seem that it's maybe something we have to live with - like your lab, Zootie doesn't seem bothered, as far as I can tell - it's more me!
Thanks again.

[molly muffin]

My dog has had intermentent muscle tremors to since starting treatment. I don't know if it is the medication or the lower cortisol and they feel things more or what exactly.