Home Archive › Forums › Dogs › Health › Blind Puppy/ DCM
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November 2, 2008 at 1:51 pm #62487AnonymousGuest
When we were in Devon we met a lady on the site who had a boxer girlie, got chatting as you do, got onto crufts and health tests etc, she said she’d bred her with a male before xmas last year and they’d only had one pup, werent sure why but got on with bringing him up , all was fine until around 4 weeks when she thought he might be blind, he just wasnt right she said, didnt seem to look at them, or anything that was put in front of him, used his nose more than anything, got him checked out and had a 2nd opinion and he was diagnosed completely blind 🙁 they thought long and hard about him and then decided to have him pts :'( anyway turns out that the stud dog had been on this trial drug for DCM, apparently the dog owners didnt tell the woman at the time, she says now they were prob more interested in the stud fee,told her that Dex was on it, she said she read up about it and it said that the drug actually enlarges the heart by expanding the arteries! Been thinking about that this morning, when I took Dex for his six month check up his heart had enlarged, had a quick look on the net this morning but havent come across anything that says that yet, anyone know anymore, why would they give an animal a drug that enlarges the organ when thats what they are trying to stop??? maybe she got it wrong but its got me thinking :-\
off for another look.November 2, 2008 at 1:53 pm #84363GSPmadMemberwhat drug is it sue? and if he’s on a trial is he definitely having the drug – are they doing a comparison of some dogs having drug and some dogs having no drug? :-\
November 2, 2008 at 2:02 pm #84364AnonymousGuestIts a blind trial Terry, hes taking tabs but I dont know if placebo or not just found this though
Brand Name: Vetmedin
Background
Pimobendan is the first drug of a new class of heart medications called inodilators. Studies have shown that when used with other cardiac medications, pimobendan can be effective for dogs with congestive heart failure related to either dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) or degenerative mitral valve disease (MVD). Veterinary cardiologists are excited about the treatment possibilities of pimobendan and expect it to be commonly used now that it is available in the United States.
This drug differs from other heart medications because it helps the heart pump more efficiently. It opens up the blood vessels that take blood both to and from the heart so the heart doesn’t have to work as hard. It also helps lessen pressure on the heart. Some clinical trials show that dogs who have benefitted from this lived longer than expected. However, more studies are needed to confirm these preliminary results.
Improvements in heart function while on pimobendan have been seen within one week of starting to take the medication, and some dogs continue to show improvement over several weeks. Many owners report an improvement in their pet’s quality of life and well-being. Dogs who show improvement on it will likely remain on pimobendan for the rest of their lives.
According to a study published in the Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association (Lombard CW, Olaf Jöns O, Bussadori CM. 2006 Jul-Aug;42(4):249-61), canine cardiac patients taking pimobendan can gain an extra nine months of life compared to conventional cardiac medications. The study examined 76 dogs with heart failure caused by atrioventricular valvular disease; 31 breeds and five European countries were involved. This same study found that within seven days, half of the dogs no longer had symptoms of heart disease.
Some veterinary cardiologists have used pimobendan for cats with myocardial failure, particularly when the disease is not related to a taurine deficiency, but that is a fairly rare condition in cats. There haven’t been any trials involving cats yet to determine safety, but anecdotally there have not been any obvious safety concerns. Pimobendan is not licensed for use in cats.
In countries where pimobendan has been in use for a long time, pimobendan has become quite popular and is now a first-line treatment for congestive heart failure in dogs with DCM or MVD.
Side Effects
Rarely, dogs taking pimobendan vomit. Call your veterinarian if your dog vomits on this drug.
Interactions with other Drugs
There are no reported drug interactions with pimobendan. However, it is not recommended for use while the dog is taking another PDE inhibitor such as theophylline.
Concerns and Cautions
Pimobendan should not be used in dogs with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or aortic stenosis.
Pimobendan is not currently recommended for use in dogs with heart disease prior to the onset of congestive heart failure. One study in dogs with early mitral valve disease suggested an increase in valve damage in the dogs given pimobendan. No studies currently exist that show benefit with early use of pimobendan in other heart diseases, such as DCM.
says can be useful when used alongside other heart medications, he not having anything else, does say open up blood vessels, would that show the heart as being bigger?
and the last bit 😮 Pimobendan is supposed to delay the onset of DCM,they saying it shouldnt be given :-\ am confused now, should he (if he is taking the real tabs ) be on it then!might print this out and take with me when we go end of Nov.
November 2, 2008 at 2:08 pm #84365GSPmadMember[quote author=jaydex link=topic=12932.msg248775#msg248775 date=1225634577]
says can be useful when used alongside other heart medications, he not having anything else, does say open up blood vessels, would that show the heart as being bigger?
[/quote]In countries where pimobendan has been in use for a long time, pimobendan has become quite popular and is now a first-line treatment for congestive heart failure in dogs with DCM or MVD.
It says that tho – is probably cos it won’t have been trialled on its own just with other meds. they have to do trials and prove it works – either on own\ with other drugs before it gets licensed for anything, so they can’t say use it on its own unless proven to work on its own, etc. which is probably why it isn’t recommended before the development of DCM – because they haven’t done the trials yet – would guess the trials re that are what you’re involved in. 😉
November 2, 2008 at 2:09 pm #84366GSPmadMemberoh and the widening blood vessels – coronary arteries are the blood vessels to the heart muscle, but widening them won’t increase the size of the heart – blood vessels can widen and narrow naturally anyway. 🙂
November 2, 2008 at 2:13 pm #84367GSPmadMemberThis is a bit technical but you could take that when you go at end of Nov too. 🙂
As I understand it is meant to increase the contraction of the heart and it widens blood vessels generally but not specifically round the heart, and is not intended to cause the heart to enlarge. :-\ Could she have got it wrong and meant to say used to prevent the heart from enlarging?
November 2, 2008 at 2:14 pm #84368GSPmadMemberany of that any good? ;D
November 2, 2008 at 2:29 pm #84369AnonymousGuestblimey I need to put my technical head on if I can find it 😀 Very useful though 🙂
The way the lady said it was like it actually MADE the heart bigger, but maybe she got confused, will def take all this with me though, will be interesting to find out if Dex’s heart has got bigger again, the drug is supposed to prolong the symptom free stage before the onset, but if is heart is still elnarging then it cant be working or he’s on the placebo? -
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