The main symptom of canine and
feline epilepsy
http://www.nativeremedies.com/petalive/easesure-epilepsy-seizures-treatment.html?kbid=5918
is seizures. Seizures, however, can occur due to an underlying
disease or environmental poisoning. Some very common items of
human use like wool, cigarette smoke, air fresheners, cheap
plastics and ceramics can lead to allergies and toxicity in
domestic animals and may actually cause canine and
feline
seizures
http://www.nativeremedies.com/petalive/easesure-epilepsy-seizures-treatment.html?kbid=5918.
Many dogs may not have a single seizure in a lifetime while
others may suffer from recurrent seizures. Opinions differ as to
whether treatment should be sought immediately after the second
seizure or not. Some feel that it is advisable to wait for
numerous seizures to occur before contacting a veterinarian.
There is a reasonable amount of experimental evidence suggesting
that treatment immediately after the diagnosis is complete,
results in controlling future occurrences. Once the dog has had
several seizure episodes, it may be difficult to provide a long
term solution.
The basic reason behind suggesting a delayed treatment is the
adverse consequences of the treatment and the exacting financial
and physical cost to owners. Even though the following
suggestions are predominately discretionary, they should provide
a reasonable guide to owners as to when to start treatment for
seizures:
.
─
If more than one seizure occurs every month and you are unable
to tolerate them.
─
In case of a severe seizure that lasts for more than five
minutes or a cluster of seizures that occur one after another.
─
If the frequency of seizures increases over time.
─
If the fundamental cause of seizure has been established as a
brain disease.
Seizure treatment is primarily based on anticonvulsants. Many
medications used for treating human epilepsy are toxic for dogs.
In some the dog eliminates them too soon to provide the desired
benefits. Phenobarbitone is usually preferred over bromide and
diazepam for its quicker results. Bromide is preferred for dogs
that have a low frequency of seizures or a history of liver
disease. Diazepam is not suitable as maintenance treatment as
the effect on dogs is not long lasting.
While treating seizures, the quantity of the administered drug
is not as important as its concentration in the blood. The
concentration of phenobarbitone and bromide must be maintained
within the therapeutic range for maximum benefit and minimum
toxicity. For this purpose, monitoring through regular blood
tests is extremely important for long term benefits.
Due consideration has also to be paid to individual responses to
the drug. Some dogs may require concentration to be maintained
at the top end while others may respond better at lower or the
end of the therapeutic range.
Regular monitoring means that you should get blood tests done
after every two weeks after starting or changing the dose.
Further attention to monitoring is required if the frequency of
seizures increases or drug related side effects are suspected.
In addition, every three to six months from start of treatment
there is a need to check whether the concentration of the drug
is within the desired therapeutic range.
References:
http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu/petcolumns/showarticle.cfm?id=180
http://www.vetspecialists.co.uk/06_Animal_Welfare/Neurology_Facts/Treatment_Epilepsy.html
http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/seizures_overview.htm#Treating
http://www.purelypets.com/articles/epilepsyarticle.htm
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