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Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - ? for Patrice about gum color and spleen
| you mentioned in Tobys thread about not being too alarmed with gum color and explained how it can change when the spleen is doing its job. So how does does this work without a spleen? I am fanatic about checking Wylies gums and she is normally a pale pink. Because of the hectic holiday and I hadnt checked in a couple of days and yesterday they were grayish white. I was trying to calm down and not rush her to the ER, because we had gone for a walk that morning and her energy and was fine. 4 hours later they were actually flushed with color which I hadnt seen before and now she is back to her pale pink this morning. Any thoughts? THanks Laurie |
| Laurie CA |
| Ha, I was wondering if anyone would catch that! My vet and I mused over that question for quite a time. Information about what happens after the spleen is removed is scarce (other than dogs can live quite fine without a spleen). But I eventually did run into something from human medicine that indicated that the liver and kidneys somehow know to pick up some of the functions of the spleen. But as far as I can tell, there is no place where the body is able to store the great quantity of blood exactly like the spleen and send it all back into circulation on a moment's notice. Probably the most important function of the spleen that comes up missing after it is removed is the protection from certain tick diseases. In human medicine they really advise folks not to go traveling to countries where this tick disease can be contracted because they don't have that mechanism left to do that job. This can be life threatening. Normal fluctuations in gum color do play out, like you are describing, in Chance. I can look at his gums or glance at his ears while we are out for a walk and see that it is a pale pink, near colorless gray. Later in the day his ears will be bright red. There just isn't the great storage capacity of the spleen anymore so the blood volume available is nearly all in circulation. He's a big dog so needs more blood pressure to keep things working! When he indicates he needs to rest for a minute or two while we are walking, I let him lie down. His gums will pink up very quickly. And then we are off again! patrice ps we had his heart etc checked earlier this year and the specialist says he has an amazing heart for a dog his age and size. small plain vanilla murmur and tiny, infrequent irregular beat. |
| Patrice NYS |
| Well an interesting and good observation, Wylies gums are still bright pink, I have never seen this even after being in remission the first time. I wonder if its the azi kicking in, since she has now been on it 4 weeks. Laurie |
| Laurie CA |
| Patrice: what are your credentials? Or are you just an informed owner? Hope this isn't taken the wrong way, just curious. |
| Courtney SLO |
| Courtney, Actually it's a good question. I seem to post a lot and that probably makes people wonder where I get all this stuff and if I am actually posting stuff that is correct. I have a degree in physical therapy. While that isn't the least bit related to veterinary care, anyone studying for a medical degree has to learn how to study and remember thousands and thousands of details. They also expect you to actually understand what you are studying so you won't accidentally hurt a patient. <VBG> Physical therapy requires nearly the same amount of sciences that other medical fields do. I remember being given an essay question on one of my physiology exams that said, "describe the complete details of digestion from beginning to end." Well, about 3 hours later I was done. I really love science. When Chance got sick I bought an enormous veterinary hematology text book and read it cover to cover. I have also picked up a couple of standard veterinary texts too. The ability that I gained studying for my degree allows me to read through medical stuff pretty fast and understand it. I can tell you that hematology and immunology are extremely hard to understand and that I still learn things all the time. I am not an expert. I do go back and re-read and study all the time. I try to make sure that everything I post is accurate. But in the end, your vet is the best resource for answers. The have clinical knowledge that I just don't have. patrice |
| Patrice NYS |
| Thanks! As I said I was just curious. I am in the field and knew your verbage etc was more than lay. |
| Courtney SLO |
| Thanks, Patrice. I was curious about that, too -- your posts have always been so helpful on both a medical and human level. You bring such value to this board, and I thank you for the time you take to keep connected to us all. Sharon and angel Raven |
| Sharon CT |
This thread was discussed between 30/11/2008 and 03/12/2008
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