kiesha09 Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 My boy Chip has inflammatory polyarthritis which has become worse in the last few weeks. He was on anti-inflammatories which were doing a great job but not anymore. So then they gave him some painkillers as well to help with the pain. But I have seen no change. The next course of action is to put him on prednisone. I've googled it and all I keep reading about are these awful side effects from long term use. Anyone have any experience with long term use of this stuff? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dxenion Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 (edited) For the last 2 years, we've had it on standby for one of our GSDs who has severe protein allergies. He gets 1 x 20mg tablet a day when the symptoms flare up. After 2-3 days we drop the dose to 1/2 tablet for 1-2 days and then take him off it. We do it this way to prevent any adrenal problems. You need to be careful as it cannot be given at the same time as some other medications (Rimadyl is one I can think of). The only side effect we've noticed is a slight increase in thirst whilst taking the tablets and for a couple of days afterwards. As he will need them for the rest of his life (he's only 3) and he is a working dog, we are also looking at alternatives but haven't found anything as effective yet. Edited: Spelling Edited June 27, 2011 by Dxenion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olivebaby Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 No experience with dogs but I'm a paediatric nurse and give it to the kids at work with asthma etc. Just remember pretty much every single drug has possible side effects and especially when not used correctly. The drug company needs to tell you these for legal reasons but I doubt it's ever stopped anyone who needs it from using it. Anyway sorry, not very helpful but I have never seen a child have adverse effects from prednisolone (that's the name we use) :-) Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florise Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 (edited) How old is your dog? Don't forget it is about quality of life and prednisolone is an amazing drug despite it's long term side effects. The main thing to be careful of is not stopping it suddenly if he has taken it for a while, you need to wean them off slowly. It can increase appetite so watch that too so he doesn't gain weight and put more pressure on his painful joints. Edited June 27, 2011 by KaseyC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebanne Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 better to have a happy, maybe shortened life, then a long one full of pain. I had my crossbreed on some really strong anti inflamm or similar several years ago for over 12 months. Lots of bad side effects, but Emma is still here and now 14 1/2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amstaff_Ambition Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 Not a dog but i have a ferret that is on it for the side effect of raised blood glucose, the other side effect we didn't want is Pred Belly though, he now has this big fat belly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mason_Gibbs Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 My dog is on 2,5mg a day for his allergies - hate using it but his quality of life is very poor without it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danois Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 My last dog at immune mediatied polyarthritis and lived on varying doses of cortisone (and then Imuran) for the 9 months between diagnosis and when he was PTS. It is a great drug for the quality of life it can provide but yes it has its side effects - I did not see much poly dipsia/ poly uria but towards the end, the muscle wastage in the head was obvious and he got a bit of a belly. In the end he developed pancreatitis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiesha09 Posted June 27, 2011 Author Share Posted June 27, 2011 Thanks for the replies everyone! Chip is only 5 so he will probably be on this drug long term. But as Rebanne said it is better to have a happy but shortened life than one full of pain. I can't bear to watch him suffer the way he is at the moment so made the decision to give this a go. He already has the biggest appetite so I'm really hoping that this won't make it worse. I have to be VERY strict with him to keep him at a good weight as well so weight gain is something I really have to be careful about with his sore joints. Danois how old was your dog when diagnosed with immune mediated polyarthritis? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 My dog has been on Cortisone for 4 years, I'd like for him not to be on it but it's either that or put him to sleep due to quality of life. He's on dose that isn't messing with him too much so he should be good for some years to come. I think we pretty much accept a shorter life span but accept it because of quality of life. He does have thin skin and muscle wastage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 Not a dog but i have a ferret that is on it for the side effect of raised blood glucose, the other side effect we didn't want is Pred Belly though, he now has this big fat belly. Cushings disease? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazyWal Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 No experience with dogs but I'm a paediatric nurse and give it to the kids at work with asthma etc. Just remember pretty much every single drug has possible side effects and especially when not used correctly. The drug company needs to tell you these for legal reasons but I doubt it's ever stopped anyone who needs it from using it. Anyway sorry, not very helpful but I have never seen a child have adverse effects from prednisolone (that's the name we use) :-) Good luck No experience either with dogs but I use it for myself as I have severe osteo and rhumatoid arthritis in pretty much every joint in my body from my jaw to my toes.I have been on it a long time and yes it has some side effects but so far I've been lucky.It has given me a new life free from pain,so if it can do that for my dog I would use it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danois Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 He was diagnosed at just over 12 months but he had symptoms from about 5-6 months but my vets (at the time) failed to diagnose him despite him presenting with fever, low WBC, swollen hock and shifting lameness. He was 21 months when I had to have him PTS. Pancreatitis meant we had to back off the cortisone and he developed IMHA. Too many fires on too many fronts for him to cope with I do wonder sometimes 'what if' the vets had picked it up earlier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSoSwift Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 My old STafford is on 20mg every second day and has been so for 4 years. Without it he would be euthanased. We tried NSAID's with virtually no effect. He has spinal arthiritis and consequent nerve damage. He has moth eaten looking coat and is bald all under his belly etc, and his coat is dry but to be honest he has never had a good coat so I am not sure exactly how much is the pred and how much is just him. He also is on heart medication. He was recently unwell and had a full blood panel and his kidneys and liver were better than average for a dog his age that wasn't on Pred which I was really shocked but excited about. When we started him on it we thought well if he gets bad side effects and he has to be euthed in 6 months at least those 6 months were a quality 6 months. 4 years down the track he is still tonking along. He will eat anything in sight and does drink more and subsequently pee's more but all in all he has a very goos quality of life and we take it day to week at a time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiesha09 Posted June 27, 2011 Author Share Posted June 27, 2011 I find it really reassuring that almost all of you have said that for your dogs the quality of life that the prenisone has given vastly outweighs the side effects. It is also reassuring that some of you have dogs who have been on it long term and they are ok. He went off his anti-inflams today and will start the prenisone on Friday so fingers crossed he'll be alright. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Daisy Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 I had a Shepherd X Kelpie who broke two vertebrae in his back when he was about 12 months old when our flatmates rotti fell on him when they were playing. His spine ended up fusing and he was on pred for about four years. The side effects were worth the vast improvement in quality of life. He would have had to be PTS otherwise. Good Luck, I hope it makes a difference for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormie Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 Orbee's been on cortisone pretty much since he was 4months old. He's coming up to 4yo and you wouldn't know he's a cortisone kid. I've seen animals live to a ripe old age who have been on life long cortisone and in many of those cases, their passing was nothing to do with cortisone. Unfortunately some animals don't cope as well as others, but if you can get by with it and have it managed properly, then they can do very well. Larger breeds tend to have a lower tolerance to the higher doses, so should be kept as low as possible. I believe the specialists don't really like to see any breed on anything higher than 60mg, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jr_inoz Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 my dog was prescribed it short term for very bad allergies. Was told (by two different vets) to not keep her on it long term as it can cause kidney problems with long term use. Guess it depends on what is more important. Tough decision to make Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oskar & Zsa Zsa Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 I find it really reassuring that almost all of you have said that for your dogs the quality of life that the prenisone has given vastly outweighs the side effects. It is also reassuring that some of you have dogs who have been on it long term and they are ok. He went off his anti-inflams today and will start the prenisone on Friday so fingers crossed he'll be alright. As some other have said, I have experience with this, but not with dogs, with me! The ideal situation is to manage the dose so it is at it's lowest possible amount to keep the Polyarthritis away, without effecting his health. I know I have to monitor my blood sugar regularly and also take calcium tablets as well as a drug called somac to protect the stomach as they can ba harsh on the tummy. Best of luck, I hope it fixes him as he must ne in real pain! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liath Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 My girl was on it. hated the drug and what it did to her. She drank constantly and was hungry all the time. She drank so much, she pee'd inside because she could never make it outside. She went from a picky eater to eating anything she found and guzzling it down. She was on a high dose tho because she had a brain tumour. But it didnt make seeing her that way any easier knowing she wasnt in pain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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