Message Number: FHL3885 | New FHL Archives SearchFrom: Sukie Crandall
Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2008 17:24:57 -0500
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [ferrethealth] diazoxide shortage
Yahoogroups failed with the first attempt to get this message=20
through. It bounced. Hey, mess ups can happen to anyone...
Begin forwarded message:
> From: Sukie Crandall
> Date: February 7, 2008 5:19:25 PM EST
> To:
> Subject: diazoxide (and permission to carry this post elsewhere)
>
> Being one of several who received a heart-felt letter from a worried=20
> parent I am going to make the request that those who are considering=20
> diazoxide for their ferrets specifically ask their compounding=20
> pharmacists if they can use veterinary grade rather than human grade=20
> diazoxide.
>
> During the early years of that drug vets here used to get hospital=20
> dregs since the unused portions of bottles had to be thrown away or=20
> put to non-human use. I suspect that state laws vary on this score=20
> over regions and time, but it is worth checking into. It is how we=20
> used to get the medication long, long ago when Fritter needed it.
>
> As so many of us know, there have often been shortages of Diazoxide=20
> (and before then the non-generic Proglycem).
>
> What many of us did not know is this information which the parent=20
> has given me permission to share. Mr. Peter Silva wrote in part:
>
>> Your suggestions of giving a ferret diazoxide (proglycem) for=20
>> insulinoma is putting hundreds of children=92s lives at risk. You=20
>> see, my daughter, along with many others have a condition called HI/
>> HA (Hyperinsulism/Hyperammonemia) and diazoxide is the only=20
>> medication keeping them alive. HI/HA has a few variants, most due=20
>> to malfunctioning pancreas and others are genetic but both can=20
>> cause severe low blood sugar levels. You can read about it at=20
>> hihagdh [at] yahoogroups.com or hyperins [at] yahoogroups.com or go=20
>> to Children=92s Hospital of Philadelphia website (www.chop.edu) or (http=
://www.chop.edu/consumer/jsp/division/generic.jsp?id=3D71509
>> ). In those yahoo forums, you see frantic parents trying to secure=20
>> the medication due to low supplies
>
>
> Here some working links I found when pursuing this:
> http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/HIHAGDH/
> http://www.hyperinsulinismus.de/viewtopic.php?t=3D196&sid=3De731ee11c6c53=
8e218fea8300dceb4a9
> http://www.sur1.org/2003Confreport.pdf
> http://www.chop.edu/consumer/jsp/division/generic.jsp?id=3D71509
>
> The big problem, of course, is to get the manufacturer to make=20
> enough of the drug often enough. That will also sound familiar to=20
> many with ferrets because of the common complaints due to the same=20
> problem existing with Purevax ferret canine distemper vaccine being=20
> made too infrequently in too small amounts.
>
> People need to have the full picture and to ask their compounding=20
> pharmacists about the options. We need to find out of there is=20
> veterinary grade of this med. Sometimes that happens when a med=20
> batch isn't made quite to human standards but is determines to still=20
> be safe.
>
> Please, feel free to share this letter with other ferret fora,=20
> lists, and newsletters as long as it is left unchanged and as long=20
> as the FHL or FML URL is given for seeing the original version. (If=20
> you are not an FHL member just look in messages in
> http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
> to get the Yahoogroups URL or look in
> http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
> to get the archives URL
>
> As time allows I plan to ask some others who will know more than I=20
> for details and I am sure that others will also want to follow-
> through, after all, these are fora where the people are generous and=20
> try to attain the most good possible in this world.
>
> If editors, or veterinary or pharmaceutical professionals need to=20
> contact Mr. Silva, please, just let me know at sukie at mac dot com,=20
> or sukiec at optonline dot net and I will pass along your mail to=20
> him. (Should anyone rare individuals who woke up on the wrong side=20
> of the bed feel like yelling at him for pointing this out I don't=20
> plan to pass along anything like that, and will remind you that with=20
> my recent bereavement and recent surgery I'd certainly rather not=20
> read such mails, either.)
>
> Some of FHL members and FML members write wonderfully convincing and=20
> charismatic letters to manufacturers, so, let's request veterinary=20
> grade and let's try to express to the manufacturer the importance of=20
> making more of the drug more often.
>
> Sukie (not a vet)
>
> Recommended ferret health links:
> http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
> http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
> http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
> http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/
> http://www.ferretcongress.org/
> http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
> http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
>
Sukie (not a vet)
Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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