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Canine Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA & IMHA) - Mac update
| Hi everyone. I thought I'd put this out there in hopes that someone will have some good advice for me. Mac's blood work was finally looking good two weeks ago. His PCV went up from 26 to 35, platelets good, retic's up to 4.5. He was at our vet's office for eleven days while we were on our vacation, and his bloodwork this morning came back with his PCV back down to 26 and his retic's at 2.4. Platelets are 312, so those are good. My vet is referring me to the Internal Medicine specialist that she's been in constant contact with since July. She is recommending a bone marrow aspirate because Mac has been so slow to respond to prednisone and azathioprine. I know that we could try cyclosporine (sp?) too and wean him off the prednisone. His thyroid tested fine. Any thoughts? She is wondering if this might be a cancer...... This is mystifying to me because he's never looked better as far as I'm concerned. Appetite is great, he's perky and fun, interested in everything that's going on around him. Ran around the house this morning with the stuffed grizzly bear I bought for him in Alaska. I dont' get it. Has anyone else experienced these ups and downs? Do you think the pred and azathioprine could actually be holding his bone marrow back? She thought it might be possible. Thank you,, Jane Jane |
| Jane MN |
| Jane, "One of the main issues with azathioprine is a problem with the bone marrow suppression." This is a quote from a site on Azathioprine http://www.marvistavet.com/html/azathioprine.html you might want to check out the rest of this page What is Mac's weight and what dosage of Azathioprine is he currently taking? I have seen several dogs who have had bone marrow suppression issues while on Azatioprine. A clue to that happening many times is a drop in the white blood count to a below normal level. Would you happen to know what Mac's current white blood count is. It certainly could be a possiblity that the combination of the pred and Azathioprine are suppressing the bone marrow too much at this point. |
| Joanne MN |
| Joanne, Mac is a 50 pound Springer Spaniel who is on 50mg of pred. He is also on 25mg of azathioprine every other day. I will pick up his lab work tomorrow to see what his WBC is and let you know. I checked out the site you sent me and that will be something I will be asking Dr Baho about when I see her. Jane |
| Jane MN |
| Best of luck |
| Courtney SLO |
This thread was discussed between 23/09/2008 and 24/09/2008
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