From:
julie_fossa@yahoo.com
Date: 2005-02-18 13:51:33 UTC
Subject: RE: High ALT
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <5548001.1108734693050.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>
Thank you, Sukie.
I looked through the archives for this and didn't find it; I forgot to go to Dr. William's website.
Both eat well. Actually LilBit is the better eater of the two only by virtue that he inhales his Chicken Gravy and noses his brother away from his if I don't watch and distract LilBit. Occasionally I just separate them so he can't be a piggy. They have dry food available all the time, though neither eat much dry.
Neither have jaundice and I haven't checked their urine for biliruben, but could with urine strips, I guess.
Both were treated with Biaxin and Amoxi for helicobacter in late December, and I saw a marked improvement in their stools. This was about a month before the bloodwork was run.
Total protein for LilBit was 6.49, which is mid reference range.
I really wonder now about lymphoma or an infection of the liver or biliary tree. I will ask his vet about it. Thanks for the info.
Julie
Author wrote:
> Julie,
> I have standing permission from Dr. Williams to copy and ... has an extremely short digestive tract, and requires meals as often as every four to six hours. > In conjunction with this physiologic change, elevations of ALT up to 800 mg/dl can be seen, and alkaline phosphatase up to approximately 100 mg/dl. ... the most common cause of true hepatic disease in the ferret is neoplasia, with lymphosarcoma causing 95% of cases. Rarely bacterial infections of the liver or biliary tree may be seen.
.... Clinical elevation of icterus or an elevated bilirubin is an excellent indicatior of primary hepatic disease, ...> Decreased total protein and mild hypoalbuminemia is a common finding ... hypoalbuminemia indicates prolonged anorexia in the ferret,...long-standing inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract. ... gastroduodenal infection by Helicobacter mustelae is a common cause of mild hypoalbuminemia,...