Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Cyclosporine Dosage

I started Toby on Atopica today. He weighs 80 lb. My vet prescribed 110 mg./day. According to Dr. Dodds, wouldn't I need to give him approx. 360 mg.? Do you think I should talk to my vet about increasing the dose or are my calculations wrong? Karen

Karen H. MO

Ginger weighs about 75lbs and was started on 200mg a day. Keeping Tody in our thoughts and prayers. Cheryl & Ginger

Cheryl & Ginger Pineville PA

Cheryl, thank you for the info. Do you give that all at once, or do you divide it into two doses? BTW, I should have said according to what I've read about Dr. Dodds' protocol. I haven't contacted Dr. Dodds. Thanks again, Karen H.

Karen H. MO

Karen, I can do the math for you but there are three different doses according to Dr. Dodds' protocol you could be using and I am not sure which one she would recommend you start with! The first recommendation is for the initial diagnosis and most likely considered to be used in the hospital: "3. +/- Cyclosporine (Atopica) starting at 10mg/kg SID for the first week, then 5mg/kg thereafter, if patient is refractory to the above drugs." (She is referring to prednisone and azathioprine) So this initial dose could be anything from 360 mg to 181 mg for Toby. SID is once per day. This is her sending home dosage: "4. Continue cyclosporine, if needed originally, at 2.5mg/kg SID" This dosage would be 90 mg. SID is once per day. I don't know what other drugs you are using. It would be important to know how much and for how long the prednsione has been used and if there are any other drugs currently being administered. I would not look to see the Atopica become effective immediately so those other drugs have to be immune modulators until the cyclosporine becomes effective. Dr. Dodds will know specifically what dosages will work here. Why don't you send her a short email asking her what she thinks? hemopet @ hotmail . com (take out spaces) We started Chance at 225 mg Atopica for 45 kg (100 lbs). He had been on 80 mg prednisone for about two months. So not the highest dose possible and we only used it monday through friday, sat and sun off. patrice ps pet-tinic might be at your vet's office on the shelf. It is highly recommended by my own vet. Here is the first and one of the cheaper prices I found on the internet: http://medi-vetrx.com/PetTinic-4-oz/M/B00076HUAA.htm

Patrice NYS

Patrice, thank you, again. I will contact Dr. Dodds. I've been trying to rely on my vet who has been talking with someone from the university in Columbia, MO. They've been fairly close to Dr. Dodds' protocol. However, we're down to the wire now. Thanks also for the info on the pet-tinic. My vet doesn't carry it nor does the other vet in my area. I'll have to order it online if Toby hangs on long enough to give it a try. Karen H.

Karen H. MO

Hi Karen Ginger received 100mg 2x a day about 12 hours apart. Hope this helps. How is Toby doing today? Cheryl & Ginger

Cheryl & Ginger Pineville PA

Hi Karen: Sheba weighed approximately 45lbs when she came home and we were giving her 250 mg of Atopica per day (125 mg in the AM and 125 mg in the PM) along with 50 mg of Pred. That was in April. She is no longer on Pred and is now down to 25 mg Atopica once per day. We will be reducing that to 10 mg per day just as soon as the vet gets some in tomorrow or Tuesday. I hope this info helps. We are rooting for Toby and will keep you in our thoughts and prayers. Hang in there! Rita, Mike and Sheba

Rita IA

Cheryl and Rita, thanks for the info. I am really tempted to increase Toby's dose, but I guess I will wait until tomorrow when I talk with the vet. He's eating well and the food is staying down. His gums are very pale, and he has practically no energy. As long as he enjoys eating, I'll keep trying to help him. Karen H.

Karen H. MO

Karen, Has Toby's absorption level of the cyclosporine been tested? If you read some of my threads, you'll see that Darcy was absorbing very little of the generic cyclosporine. Her dosage had been 50 mg. twice daily. We changed to the brand name Neoral (our specialist said there is no difference between the human Neoral and the veterinary Atopica, that they just use a different name for veterinarian use) because the specialist said she had been hearing that there is a difference in the compounding of the brand name that could offer better absorption. After we changed to Neoral, there was better absorption but not enough, so the specialist doubled Darcy's dose of Neoral to 100 mg. twice daily --- a total of 200 mg. per day. Darcy weighs 27 pounds. She is getting tested on Tuesday for PCV and Neoral/cyclosporine absorbtion. As to your question of proper dosage amounts, it seems that, as in Darcy's case, every dog can be different. I would think that your vet/specialist should be able to determine the proper dosage for Toby, especially if he/she is doing the proper blood work and monitoring him closely. Why don't you talk to the vet about your concerns. Sometimes you have to make them take the time to tell you everything that you have the right to know. We certainly pay them enough for their services, don't we? Prayers and best wishes to you and Toby. Karen

Karen NC

Karen, My dog is 70 lbs and when he started the Atopica initially he was on 200mg in the morning of Atopica and 100 mg in the evening of Atopica. In addition, he was on 10 mg of pred a day. He's now reduced to 100 mg Atopica twice a day and 5 mg of pred every other day. Hope this helps Chris & Alex

Chris PA

This thread was discussed on 30/11/2008

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