How to Treat a Dog with Cushing's Disease
Start your dog on an ‘induction’ dose., Have your vet perform a blood test., Begin long term mitotane treatment., Monitor your dog for side effects., Wait for symptoms to improve., Take your dog to your vet regularly.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Start your dog on an ‘induction’ dose.
Mitotane is an oral drug used to treat pituitary-dependent Cushing’s disease (caused by a pituitary tumor).
Initially, your vet will prescribe an induction mitotane dose.
This is a high dose that will cause enough adrenal gland damage to bring cortisol levels back to normal and start improving disease symptoms.You will give the induction dose once or twice daily for one to two weeks.Dogs with Cushing’s disease drink a lot of water and eat a lot.
During the induction treatment with mitotane, your dog’s appetite and water intake will likely start going back to normal.Mitotane is more effectively absorbed by the body with food, so feed your dog when you give each dose. -
Step 2: Have your vet perform a blood test.
After the induction period, your vet will perform a blood test called an ACTH stimulation test.
This test, which measures blood cortisol levels, is a way to determine whether the medication to treat Cushing’s disease is working.
On the test, your vet will look for decreased blood cortisol levels, indicating the adrenals are working normally again.ACTH is a hormone released by the pituitary gland that stimulates adrenal cortisol release., Mitotane treatment is lifelong.
Long term mitotane treatment is usually once or twice weekly.Unfortunately, for some dogs, Cushing’s disease symptoms come back during long term mitotane treatment.
If this happens to your dog, it will need to go back to daily mitotane.To keep the symptoms under control, your vet may need to increase the mitotane dose over time.Mitotane is fairly inexpensive, compared with other Cushing’s disease treatments., A major disadvantage of mitotane is the serious side effects, including GI problems (vomiting, anorexia) and neurologic problems (weakness, seizures, uncoordinated walking).
These side effects are usually due to excessive adrenal gland damage, causing cortisol levels to drop too low.If you see these side effects, contact your vet immediately.
Your vet may need to stop mitotane treatment and start your dog on prednisone., With mitotane treatment, your dog will start eating and drinking normally again fairly quickly (possibly during the induction period).
Hair loss, which is another common sign of Cushing’s disease, will take longer to improve.
Overall, it will take about four to six months before your dog’s symptoms completely improve with mitotane treatment., Mitotane treatment requires very close monitoring by you and your vet.
You will need to watch for side effects at home and your vet will need to monitor your dog’s blood cortisol levels.
Your vet will recommend bringing your dog in about every three to four months for an ACTH stimulation test.At these visits, your vet may decide to adjust the mitotane dosage. -
Step 3: Begin long term mitotane treatment.
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Step 4: Monitor your dog for side effects.
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Step 5: Wait for symptoms to improve.
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Step 6: Take your dog to your vet regularly.
Detailed Guide
Mitotane is an oral drug used to treat pituitary-dependent Cushing’s disease (caused by a pituitary tumor).
Initially, your vet will prescribe an induction mitotane dose.
This is a high dose that will cause enough adrenal gland damage to bring cortisol levels back to normal and start improving disease symptoms.You will give the induction dose once or twice daily for one to two weeks.Dogs with Cushing’s disease drink a lot of water and eat a lot.
During the induction treatment with mitotane, your dog’s appetite and water intake will likely start going back to normal.Mitotane is more effectively absorbed by the body with food, so feed your dog when you give each dose.
After the induction period, your vet will perform a blood test called an ACTH stimulation test.
This test, which measures blood cortisol levels, is a way to determine whether the medication to treat Cushing’s disease is working.
On the test, your vet will look for decreased blood cortisol levels, indicating the adrenals are working normally again.ACTH is a hormone released by the pituitary gland that stimulates adrenal cortisol release., Mitotane treatment is lifelong.
Long term mitotane treatment is usually once or twice weekly.Unfortunately, for some dogs, Cushing’s disease symptoms come back during long term mitotane treatment.
If this happens to your dog, it will need to go back to daily mitotane.To keep the symptoms under control, your vet may need to increase the mitotane dose over time.Mitotane is fairly inexpensive, compared with other Cushing’s disease treatments., A major disadvantage of mitotane is the serious side effects, including GI problems (vomiting, anorexia) and neurologic problems (weakness, seizures, uncoordinated walking).
These side effects are usually due to excessive adrenal gland damage, causing cortisol levels to drop too low.If you see these side effects, contact your vet immediately.
Your vet may need to stop mitotane treatment and start your dog on prednisone., With mitotane treatment, your dog will start eating and drinking normally again fairly quickly (possibly during the induction period).
Hair loss, which is another common sign of Cushing’s disease, will take longer to improve.
Overall, it will take about four to six months before your dog’s symptoms completely improve with mitotane treatment., Mitotane treatment requires very close monitoring by you and your vet.
You will need to watch for side effects at home and your vet will need to monitor your dog’s blood cortisol levels.
Your vet will recommend bringing your dog in about every three to four months for an ACTH stimulation test.At these visits, your vet may decide to adjust the mitotane dosage.
About the Author
Timothy Price
Brings years of experience writing about pet care and related subjects.
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