From:
"Jeff"
Date: 2007-06-26 11:31:20 UTC
Subject: Fasting for surgery and blood testing
To: <ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com>
First, I would not suggest that you fast your ferret anywhere near 5 hours again. All food has generally left the ferret's system within 4 hours, and going that long or longer with an insulinomic ferret increases the chances of a seizure. Here's a quote from Dr. Bruce Williams where he feels that 2 hours is sufficient for a blood test:
BEGIN QUOTE
From: "Williams, Bruce Dr." <Bruce.Williams@AFIP.OSD.MIL>
Dear GrapeD Fert:
While it is likely that your ferret will survive the 8-12 hour fast, it
is not a good idea for any 6-year old to be stresses by a fast of that
length due to the possibility of insulinoma in this age group. A fast
of 2-4 hours is sufficient for both purposes; the shorter for a blood
test, and the longer for surgery.
END QUOTE
And here is a quote from a study by Dr. Williams, et al, that concludes that the most effective treatment is surgery to get rid of visible nodules AND part of the pancreas:
BEGIN QUOTE
J Am Anim Hosp Assoc. 1998 Nov-Dec;34(6):471-5. Links
Insulinoma in the ferret: clinical findings and treatment
comparison of 66 cases.
Weiss CA,
Williams BH,
Scott MV.
Potomac Animal Hospital, Maryland 20854, USA.
The clinical signs and surgical findings were reported for 66
ferrets with insulinomas confirmed histologically. All of the
ferrets were treated with one of three modalities, and
disease-free intervals and survival times were gathered to
determine the most effective treatment. The three treatment
groups included 10 ferrets treated medically, 27 ferrets treated
with pancreatic nodulectomy, and 29 ferrets treated with
pancreatic nodulectomy combined with a partial pancreatectomy.
The mean disease-free intervals for each group were 22, 234,
and 365 days, respectively. The mean survival times for each
group were 186, 456, and 668 days, respectively. Based upon
the data, recommendations were made for treating insulinoma
in the ferret.
PMID: 9826281 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
END QUOTE
I would also suggest that you look in the FHL archives for some other information, including information about post-surgery care.
There is one post from October 30, 2007 from Sukie listing many things to be aware of and to do to help a ferret to heal properly post-surgery. It was a very detailed and helpful posting.
Good Luck,
Jeff
In Memory of Neo
Caring for Trinny, Morphy, Baby Girl, and Luna
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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