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Thyroid surgery
Buddha's checkup today revealed that she is indeed hyperthyroid. The doctor
showed me how enlarged her thyroid is now. I'm kicking myself because another vet saw this a year ago, but because her T3 levels were only high-normal I did nothing. (Either I misunderstood what this doctor's partner said about medication, or he didn't tell me about Tapazole.) Our (the senior one there and founder of the practice 20+ yeats ago) vet told me that cats do best with radiation treatment, but that his own cat did well with surgery, which he performed. Because I trust him, if her blood tests for renal function etc. come back okay, I think we will opt for the surgery. (We would have to take her elsewhere for the radiation treatment. Cost is not so much a factor--surgery is about $600 and radiation $1,000, not such a big difference--as trust. Ever since my friend's kitten came back from a spaying declawed I have some fears about vets I don't know.) If her bloodwork is okay, we will have an ultrasound done of her heart to make sure that it can withstand the surgery. I would like to hear from anyone who has had this surgery done for their cat. He explained the risks involved with the parathyroid--apparently they leave a bit of that in there, but on rare occasions cats who have the surgery do not recover parathyroid function. On the good side, our fat girl has lost three pounds since her last checkup. I want to think it is the canned food, but the vet told me cats lose weight due to being hyperthyroid. He also told me that Boo is the fattest cat he has ever seen with an overactive thyroid. She is a small-boned female who now weighs 13.6 pounds. She is a really sweet and quirky cat, and if my failure to act last year has hurt her I'm just going to want to die. |
#2
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"Mary" wrote in message .com... Buddha's checkup today revealed that she is indeed hyperthyroid. The doctor showed me how enlarged her thyroid is now. I'm kicking myself because another vet saw this a year ago, but because her T3 levels were only high-normal I did nothing. (Either I misunderstood what this doctor's partner said about medication, or he didn't tell me about Tapazole.) Our (the senior one there and founder of the practice 20+ yeats ago) vet told me that cats do best with radiation treatment, but that his own cat did well with surgery, which he performed. Because I trust him, if her blood tests for renal function etc. come back okay, I think we will opt for the surgery. (We would have to take her elsewhere for the radiation treatment. Cost is not so much a factor--surgery is about $600 and radiation $1,000, not such a big difference--as trust. Ever since my friend's kitten came back from a spaying declawed I have some fears about vets I don't know.) If her bloodwork is okay, we will have an ultrasound done of her heart to make sure that it can withstand the surgery. I would like to hear from anyone who has had this surgery done for their cat. He explained the risks involved with the parathyroid--apparently they leave a bit of that in there, but on rare occasions cats who have the surgery do not recover parathyroid function. Correct. My (RIP) cat, Debbie, had thyroid surgery when she was 11 or 12. She was on Tapazole & doing apparently fine, but she also had chronic liver disease, & Tapazole paired w/ liver dysfunction wasn't advised by either my regular vet nor the internist vet, long-term. The radiation treatment wasn't available anywhere in this area at that point, so surgery was the only option left. My vet was hoping - & thought - she had done fine, not involving the parathyroids at all during the surgery, but Debbie did eventually become hypothyroid - a couple of months post-surgery, IIRC. Otoh, her thyroid levels were easy to manage w/ thyroxin, a thyroid supplement (which didn't have a potentially negative reaction w/ the liver prob). The surgery itself & the recovery period went fine. Debbie was grumpy & hoarse (from intubation, I gather) the day after her surgery, but she was feeling *much* better by the following day, & went on to have an uneventful recovery. Maybe I'm missing something, but how come Tapazole (Vs. surgery) can't be started now for your cat? On the good side, our fat girl has lost three pounds since her last checkup. I want to think it is the canned food, but the vet told me cats lose weight due to being hyperthyroid. Yes. The metabolism is sped up in one who is hyperthyroid, so more calories are burned. Result: lost weight. Cathy He also told me that Boo is the fattest cat he has ever seen with an overactive thyroid. She is a small-boned female who now weighs 13.6 pounds. She is a really sweet and quirky cat, and if my failure to act last year has hurt her I'm just going to want to die. |
#3
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"Cathy Friedmann" wrote in message ... Correct. My (RIP) cat, Debbie, had thyroid surgery when she was 11 or 12. I forgot to mention that Buddha is nine. She was on Tapazole & doing apparently fine, but she also had chronic liver disease, & Tapazole paired w/ liver dysfunction wasn't advised by either my regular vet nor the internist vet, long-term. He mentioned this, too, as another reason why he needed to do more blood work. The radiation treatment wasn't available anywhere in this area at that point, so surgery was the only option left. My vet was hoping - & thought - she had done fine, not involving the parathyroids at all during the surgery, but Debbie did eventually become hypothyroid - a couple of months post-surgery, IIRC. My vet drew the two lobes of the thyroid gland on the board and showed me the parathyroid glands at the top of each as he described the surgery. He stressed that the success of the operation depended in part upon leaving that small bit of parathyroid, and that it was so very small that it was easy to take too much of it, and that this may be why some cats do not recover function. But he did say that only three cats in his 20+ year practice had that happen and only one died. Otoh, her thyroid levels were easy to manage w/ thyroxin, a thyroid supplement (which didn't have a potentially negative reaction w/ the liver prob). My mother took animal thyroid for years and then synthroid later, due to thyroid cancer that had been treated with surgery and radioactive iodine, so I do know how that works. The surgery itself & the recovery period went fine. Debbie was grumpy & hoarse (from intubation, I gather) the day after her surgery, but she was feeling *much* better by the following day, & went on to have an uneventful recovery. Good to know, thank you. Maybe I'm missing something, but how come Tapazole (Vs. surgery) can't be started now for your cat? It is my impression that the surgery produces better results. I asked my vet the question, "if it were your cat what would you do?" and he said his cat had hyperthyroidism and he did the surgery and she was just fine. Is it your opinion (and others please chime in) that the tapazole would be better to try first, instead of going right in for the surgery? (This is assuming her blood work comes back NOT showing impaired liver function, and of course the surgery would only happen if her heart ultrasound comes back showing a healthy heart.) I want to give her the best possible chance at a long and healthy life. We could do the radiation but I would want to be there the whole time--I'm very wary of strange vets. |
#4
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"Mary" wrote in message .com... "Cathy Friedmann" wrote in message ... snipped Maybe I'm missing something, but how come Tapazole (Vs. surgery) can't be started now for your cat? It is my impression that the surgery produces better results. I asked my vet the question, "if it were your cat what would you do?" and he said his cat had hyperthyroidism and he did the surgery and she was just fine. Is it your opinion (and others please chime in) that the tapazole would be better to try first, instead of going right in for the surgery? (This is assuming her blood work comes back NOT showing impaired liver function, and of course the surgery would only happen if her heart ultrasound comes back showing a healthy heart.) Yes, definitely, trying the Tapazole first, IMO (assuming no liver prob)! It's non-invasive, compared w/ major surgery. Also, once the surgery is done, that's that. If her thyroid levels are initially still not on target - which is common for both animals & people, then the medication can be adjusted one way or the other by small increments. The only timess I'd consider the surgery over the medication would involve the sort of scenario Debbie had, or if the cat was incredibly difficult to pill & after trying for a while, it was continuing to be a major battle each day to get the medication into her/him. Cathy I want to give her the best possible chance at a long and healthy life. We could do the radiation but I would want to be there the whole time--I'm very wary of strange vets. |
#5
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"Cathy Friedmann" wrote Yes, definitely, trying the Tapazole first, IMO (assuming no liver prob)! It's non-invasive, compared w/ major surgery. Also, once the surgery is done, that's that. If her thyroid levels are initially still not on target - which is common for both animals & people, then the medication can be adjusted one way or the other by small increments. Thanks. I will discuss this with our vet as soon as the blood work results are in (he said tomorrow, as they are open on Saturdays), and see what he says. |
#6
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"Cathy Friedmann" wrote Yes, definitely, trying the Tapazole first, IMO (assuming no liver prob)! It's non-invasive, compared w/ major surgery. Also, once the surgery is done, that's that. If her thyroid levels are initially still not on target - which is common for both animals & people, then the medication can be adjusted one way or the other by small increments. Thanks. I will discuss this with our vet as soon as the blood work results are in (he said tomorrow, as they are open on Saturdays), and see what he says. |
#7
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"Mary" wrote in message .com... "Cathy Friedmann" wrote in message ... snipped Maybe I'm missing something, but how come Tapazole (Vs. surgery) can't be started now for your cat? It is my impression that the surgery produces better results. I asked my vet the question, "if it were your cat what would you do?" and he said his cat had hyperthyroidism and he did the surgery and she was just fine. Is it your opinion (and others please chime in) that the tapazole would be better to try first, instead of going right in for the surgery? (This is assuming her blood work comes back NOT showing impaired liver function, and of course the surgery would only happen if her heart ultrasound comes back showing a healthy heart.) Yes, definitely, trying the Tapazole first, IMO (assuming no liver prob)! It's non-invasive, compared w/ major surgery. Also, once the surgery is done, that's that. If her thyroid levels are initially still not on target - which is common for both animals & people, then the medication can be adjusted one way or the other by small increments. The only timess I'd consider the surgery over the medication would involve the sort of scenario Debbie had, or if the cat was incredibly difficult to pill & after trying for a while, it was continuing to be a major battle each day to get the medication into her/him. Cathy I want to give her the best possible chance at a long and healthy life. We could do the radiation but I would want to be there the whole time--I'm very wary of strange vets. |
#8
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"Mary" wrote in message .com... My vet drew the two lobes of the thyroid gland on the board and showed me the parathyroid glands at the top of each as he described the surgery. He stressed that the success of the operation depended in part upon leaving that small bit of parathyroid, and that it was so very small that it was easy to take too much of it, and that this may be why some cats do not recover function. But he did say that only three cats in his 20+ year practice had that happen and only one died. A generally accepted 10% fatality rate is associated with thyroidectomy. To my mind, that's unacceptable since other options are available. Not only is keen and exacting surgical skill necessary to try and save at least one of the four parathyroid glands which are very closely associated with the thyroid glands, maintaining the microscopic blood supply to the tiny organs can be very tricky. If both thyroid glands are removed, there's always a question as to how well the parathyroid glands will function; if they fail the cat could have a fatal seizure due to a severe drop in blood calcium. Click on the link to see an actual photo of the thyroid and parathyroid glands. http://maxshouse.com/anatomical_diag..._b+w_photo.jpg If you're not comfortable with Tapazole, speak to your vet about carbimazole - its also in the Thioureylene family but has much fewer and milder side effects than Tapazole. In the US, Carbimazole is available only through compounding pharmacies. If antithyroid meds are out of the question, as much as I hate to say it, radioiodine tx would be my next choice. Before you go ahead with either permanent and irreversible tx, put you cat on Carbimazole or Tapazole for a month or two and monitor his kidney function very closely. Hyperthyroidism increases the GFR which can mask CRF in cats with underlying renal disease. Phil -- "How long does a cat stretch? From one end of my life to the other" Feline healthca http://maxshouse.com |
#9
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"Phil P." wrote A generally accepted 10% fatality rate is associated with thyroidectomy. To my mind, that's unacceptable since other options are available. That is higher than I like, for sure. [snip] If you're not comfortable with Tapazole, speak to your vet about carbimazole - its also in the Thioureylene family but has much fewer andmilder side effects than Tapazole. In the US, Carbimazole is available only through compounding pharmacies. If antithyroid meds are out of the question, as much as I hate to say it, radioiodine tx would be my next choice. Before you go ahead with either permanent and irreversible tx, put you caton Carbimazole or Tapazole for a month or two and monitor his kidney function very closely. Hyperthyroidism increases the GFR which can mask CRFin cats with underlying renal disease. Thanks so much Phil. I printed this and will discuss it with the vet. If only my doctor did the radioiodine treatment! |
#10
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"Mary" wrote in message
.com... "Phil P." wrote A generally accepted 10% fatality rate is associated with thyroidectomy. To my mind, that's unacceptable since other options are available. That is higher than I like, for sure. [snip] If you're not comfortable with Tapazole, speak to your vet about carbimazole - its also in the Thioureylene family but has much fewer andmilder side effects than Tapazole. In the US, Carbimazole is available only through compounding pharmacies. If antithyroid meds are out of the question, as much as I hate to say it, radioiodine tx would be my next choice. Before you go ahead with either permanent and irreversible tx, put you caton Carbimazole or Tapazole for a month or two and monitor his kidney function very closely. Hyperthyroidism increases the GFR which can mask CRFin cats with underlying renal disease. Thanks so much Phil. I printed this and will discuss it with the vet. If only my doctor did the radioiodine treatment! Well, that's also a 'once it's done, that's it' deal. Personally, even if interested in the radioiodine treatment, I'd go with the Tapazole/med route for a few months first, & see what happens, subsequent blood work (thyroid levels, CRF pointers, liver values), & how the whole scenario's going, in general, before making that leap. Although I realize in this case, it's a moot point. Cathy |
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